Overview
- Sergey Lavrov rejected the Financial Times account that a hard Russian memorandum prompted cancellation of a proposed U.S.–Russia meeting in Budapest, calling the reported sequence of events false.
- Lavrov said the document in question was an unofficial non-paper sent days before the Trump–Putin phone call and that it reiterated points discussed in Anchorage.
- He stated that President Trump did not mention any 'provocative' paper during the call with President Vladimir Putin.
- According to Lavrov, Trump proposed meeting in Budapest, Putin agreed, and both sides tasked their foreign ministries to prepare for it.
- Lavrov noted that Senator Marco Rubio publicly characterized the Trump–Putin call as constructive and suggested a meeting was not necessary, and he contrasted Trump’s approach to Ukraine with that of the previous administration.