Marco Rubio says U.S. will help resolve Ukraine war "if that opportunity presents itself"

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held a brief meeting in Manila on Thursday during an ASEAN gathering, their first known face-to-face discussion in months. The conversation focused on the war in Ukraine, which has stalled peace efforts. Rubio had previously expressed skepticism about resuming U.S.-brokered talks, but he later indicated that Washington remained willing to help resolve the conflict should the right circumstances arise. Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with two of Donald Trump’s envoys about reviving diplomacy. The meeting matters because it signals a possible shift in U.S. engagement after months of deadlock, even as Russia maintains its territorial demands and Ukraine continues drone strikes on Russian infrastructure.