Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met this Saturday with his German counterpart, Johann Wadephul, at the first meeting between the heads of diplomacy of both countries since the start of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine four and a half years ago.

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“The meeting was requested by the German side,” Maria Zakharova, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, told the Russian press on the sidelines of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Lavrov, who has accused Germany of being involved in the conflict, and Wadephul shook hands before the press, after which the closed-door meeting began.

“Bilateral relations and the situation around Ukraine were addressed,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

💬 #Zakharova: Germany’s FM @JoWadephul requested a meeting with FM #Lavrov.

Yet his staff demanded restricted media access, no questions, no audio of opening remarks & an embargo on materials.

👉 The “Western democracy of the beautiful garden”…https://t.co/8tRgoBHETS pic.twitter.com/XkddZ21USa

— MFA Russia 🇷🇺 (@mfa_russia) September 26, 2026

She added that, in this regard, “Wadephul corroborated the public position already expressed on more than one occasion by the German Government.”

The meeting, the last held by the Russian minister in New York, lasted for a little over 20 minutes, after which there were no statements to the press.

The Russian minister’s last meeting with a German counterpart, Anna Lena Baerbock, took place on January 18, 2022, in Moscow, more than a month before the start of what Moscow calls the special military operation.

According to Zakharova, the German side demanded to limit the presence of media, that there be no questions from the press and that the press could not record the beginning of the meeting.

This past Wednesday, Wadephul had urged to increase pressure on Russia to force the country to engage in “serious” talks to achieve peace in Ukraine.

From teleSUR English via This RSS Feed.