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Lavrov, Kerry ‘run into each other’ at hotel, have brief chat
Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov and US special presidential envoy John Kerry were in India for separate bilateral meetings – the Russian minister met his Indian counterpart to prepare the grounds for an annual summit while the US envoy was holding talks aimed at mitigating India’s fossil energy use.
Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov and US special presidential envoy John Kerry met briefly in the Indian capital on Tuesday and talked about climate-related matters.
Lavrov and Kerry were in India for separate bilateral meetings – the Russian minister met his Indian counterpart to prepare the grounds for an annual summit while the US envoy was holding talks aimed at mitigating India’s fossil energy use.
“The two ran into each other by happenstance staying at the same hotel and chatted for a few minutes about climate,” the US embassy said without giving details.
People familiar with developments on the Russian side also confirmed the encounter. The people said on condition of anonymity that the meeting was sought by the US side and lasted almost 15 minutes.
Kerry, in his previous role as secretary of state in the Barack Obama administration, and Lavrov had played key roles in the protracted negotiations that led to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
The US embassy said that over the next few days, Kerry will meet with a range of representatives of the Indian government, private sector and non-governmental organisations.
Lavrov travelled to Pakistan from India hours after his talks with external affairs minister S Jaishankar.
