Lavrov warns Rubio against 'unacceptable' American arms sales to Kyiv

MANILA — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned Washington against continuing arms sales to Kyiv during a meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the Philippines on Thursday.During the meeting, which took place on the sidelines of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) foreign ministers’ summit, Lavrov told Rubio that it would be “unacceptable” for the US to continue arming Ukraine, according to a statement released by Russia’s foreign ministry.”Lavrov briefed his American counterpart on the actual situation along the front line and emphasized that it would be unacceptable to further arm the Kyiv regime,” the statement reads.Lavrov “reaffirmed Russia’s readiness for a political and diplomatic settlement of the conflict”, a statement from Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, adding that the minister told Rubio that ⁠Moscow remained committed ⁠to proposals put forward by Donald Trump and Vladimir ⁠Putin at their August 2025 meeting ⁠in Alaska.The sit-down came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had spoken with US envoys in a bid to revive stalled talks aimed at ending the years-long war.Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Rubio said the US remains prepared to play a “constructive role” in helping bring an end to the war.He said Trump had made clear that ⁠the US was prepared to help facilitate an end to a “senseless war” if the opportunity arose. He said Washington had conveyed that message to Moscow while declining to characterize Russia’s position during the talks.The two sides also discussed the situation in the Arabian Gulf, where the US remains locked in conflict with Iran.US President Donald Trump has signaled his support for Ukraine’s long-range strikes against Russia, which have sought to target Russian energy infrastructure.”It’s an escalation, but it’s also an escalation that can help lead to an end,” Trump said of Ukraine’s strategy during the NATO summit in Ankara earlier this month.Russian authorities have said that Ukrainian strikes killed four people overnight into across Russia and Russian-occupied territories.In a post on Telegram, Sergey Aksyonov, the head of Russian-occupied Crimea, reported that two people were killed and five were injured following strikes on the region, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014.In the western Russian region of Voronezh, Alexander Gusev, the local governor, said a three-year-old boy also died after a drone crashed into a house and caused a fire.Alexander Shuvaev, the acting governor of Belgorod, which is also in western Russia, said one person was killed following an attack on the Shebekinsky district.Ukraine’s air force said Russian forces had launched a ballistic missile, five cruise missiles, and 168 attack drones at Ukraine overnight.It said local air defences had “shot down or neutralised” two Kh-59/69 cruise missiles and 154 drones.