Rubio meets Russia's Lavrov in Manila to try to revive prospect of US helping end war in Ukraine

MANILA, Philippines (AP) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Thursday in the Philippines for talks where he was expected to renew the prospect of the U.S. trying to broker an end to the war in Ukraine. The U.S. State Department offered few details about the meeting on the sidelines of an annual gathering by foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Manila. 'They discussed the U.S.-Russia relationship and the need to end the Russia-Ukraine war,' a State Department spokesperson said in a statement. Rubio told reporters in Manila on Wednesday that he planned to raise the conflict in Ukraine with Lavrov, saying that the U.S. remained open to playing a role in ending the conflict 'if that opportunity presents itself.' 'We have to have a relationship with the Russian government, even though we have areas of disagreement,' Rubio said, noting they are the two largest nuclear-armed countries. Before Rubio and Lavrov met, they ignored shouted questions from reporters about whether Russia was helping Iran by providing targeting data on U.S. locations in the region and when Russia would stop its war in Ukraine. When he left the meeting about half an hour later, Lavrov was asked again if Russia is helping Iran target U.S. troops. Lavrov did not answer questions but appeared to be challenging reporters by saying, 'Speak louder,' even though the room was quiet and questions could be clearly heard. When he left the meeting about half an hour later, Lavrov was asked again if Russia is helping Iran target U.S. troops. 'Nice hairstyle,' he said while staring at the reporter.