Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with the Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to lay the groundwork for negotiating a settlement ending the Russo–Ukrainian War. The meeting follows a call between President Trump and Vladimir Putin, the first communication between the heads of state of the U.S. and Russia since February 2022.

The delegation, which also included National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and the special envoy Steve Witkoff, discussed ways to improve relations between Russia and the U.S. According to a press release by the State Department, these included “establish[ing] a consultation mechanism to address irritants to our bilateral relationship” and “working on a path to ending the conflict in Ukraine as soon as possible in a way that is enduring, sustainable, and acceptable to all sides.”

News of the meeting precipitated consternation in Europe earlier this week, when European leaders objected to the absence of European and Ukrainian delegations at the discussion. An emergency meeting was hosted by the French president Emmanuel Macron in an attempt to come to a consensus on the continent about the correct path forward for Ukrainian peace talks, but the Europeans were unable to agree on how to proceed and whether they would be willing to deploy troops in Ukraine as part of a potential settlement.