Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday that the United States delegation expressed readiness to restore and expand the bilateral relationship. The two countries held a high-level meeting in Saudi Arabia yesterday, which included discussions on the war in Ukraine. The diplomat said the Russian delegation explained Moscow's side of the conflict, including "threats to Russia’s security" from Ukraine's bid to join NATO and the "need to most harshly stop the actions" of the Ukrainian government aiming to "destroy everything connected with Russia" on its territory.

Lavrov claimed that the US demonstrated the will "to resolve not only the Ukrainian crisis, but to create conditions for the restoration and expansion of the partnership [with Russia] in the trade, economic, and geopolitical spheres." He added the two sides must "clean up the legacy" left by former US President Joe Biden, who cut ties with Russia after it invaded Ukraine.