Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met Sunday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, marking the first time the two held formal talks since the U.S. imposed new sanctions on the country.
“We felt the readiness of our U.S. colleagues to continue dialogue. I think there’s no alternative to that,” the Lavrov said after the hour-long meeting. Tillerson did not talk to press, and proceeded directly to his motorcade, according to NBC News.
The two met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations held in Manila, Philippines. President Trump signed a bill last week imposing sanctions on the Russian Federation in response to meddling in last year’s U.S. presidential election, after the legislation got overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress.
Tillerson also met with his counterparts from South Korean and China on Sunday to discuss next steps towards the denuclearization of North Korea one day after the United Nations passed a resolution imposing sanctions on that country for its ballistic missile tests.
