Lavrov meets with Blinken in New Delhi

Sergey Lavrov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, and Antony Blinken, United States Secretary of State, met Thursday for the first time since the Russian military operation in Ukraine began on Feb. 24, 2022, according to a senior US official.

The meeting lasted less than 10 minutes and was held on the sidelines of the G20 talks in the Indian capital, New Delhi, a day after Blinken announced that he did not plan to meet his Russian or Chinese counterparts.

Blinken reiterated the United States’ support for Ukraine to “refute any notion the Russians had that American support for Ukraine was waning” after European allies increased support for peace initiatives, according to AFP.

Blinken also pressured Lavrov to reverse his country's decision to suspend the New START nuclear treaty, which is a nuclear arms reduction treaty between the United States and Russia.

He also called for the release of American prisoner Paul Whelan, who is being held in Russia since Dec. 28, 2018 after he was accused of spying.