Lavrov, Rubio Hold Phone Talks on Ukrainian Assaults on Russia
(MENAFN) Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held a phone conversation on Sunday with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, focusing on the imminent Moscow-Kiev talks in Istanbul and recent Ukrainian assaults on Russian soil.
Just one day before the scheduled negotiations in Türkiye, two bridges in Russia’s Bryansk and Kursk border regions were destroyed by bomb attacks, resulting in at least seven fatalities and numerous injuries. Russia’s Investigative Committee labeled the incidents as acts of sabotage.
That same day, drone strikes targeted military airbases across several regions: Murmansk in the north, Ivanovo and Ryazan in western Russia, Irkutsk in Siberia, and Amur in the Far East.
The Russian Foreign Ministry reported that Rubio “expressed sincere condolences on the civilian casualties resulting from the bombings of railway infrastructure in the Bryansk and Kursk regions on June 1.”
Lavrov assured that the attacks would be thoroughly investigated and said, “the results will be published in the very near future.” He added, “The guilty parties will be identified and will inevitably face deserved punishment.”
The two diplomats also “exchanged views on various initiatives concerning the political resolution of the Ukrainian crisis,” including the upcoming Russia-Ukraine negotiations scheduled for June 2 in Istanbul.
US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said Rubio “reiterated President Trump’s call for continued direct talks between Russia and Ukraine to achieve a lasting peace.”
Following the Ukrainian raids, Russia responded with multiple counterstrikes aimed at Ukrainian defense industry sites, military assembly locations, and warehouses. The Russian Defense Ministry reported that most of these retaliatory strikes were successfully thwarted, though some caused material damage.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian media described the Russian counterattacks as part of a “historic” operation codenamed Spiderweb, allegedly planned for over 18 months and targeting Russia’s “strategic aviation.”
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