Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke on the phone Monday. Rubio and Lavrov may meet on Thursday. 

“On October 20, a phone conversation was held between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. A constructive discussion of potential specific steps in the interests of implementing the understandings reached during the October 16 phone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump was held,” the Russian Foreign Ministry stated following the call.

Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said Rubio “emphasized the importance of upcoming engagements as an opportunity for Moscow and Washington to collaborate on advancing a durable resolution of the Russia-Ukraine war.”

Reuters reported that Lavrov and Rubio are now preparing for an in-person meeting. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said it’s possible for details to be agreed to during the meeting between Rubio and Lavrov. He said there are ongoing discussions with Americans through different channels. 

Ryabkov explained that the Ukraine war, economic ties, and other issues would be discussed. While Trump’s main focus appears is on ending the war in Ukraine, Moscow is seeking a more comprehensive deal aimed at repairing relations with Washington. 

Trump and Putin have discussed meeting in Hungary. Budapest is a member of NATO, but Hungarian President Viktor Orbán has maintained a relationship with Putin. 

Ukrainian President Zelensky said he would attend the summit if he was invited. “If it is an invitation in a format where we meet as three or, as it’s called, shuttle diplomacy… then in one format or another, we will agree,” he told reporters on Monday.