US Secretary of State: "US-Russia Foreign Ministers Meeting Canceled... Meaningless at the Start of the Invasion" (2nd Report)

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken announced on the 22nd that he has canceled the U.S.-Russia foreign ministers' meeting scheduled for the 24th (local time) in Belgium.

Secretary Blinken attended a joint press conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Washington that afternoon and said, "I sent a letter informing Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov of this fact."

He explained, "Last week, we agreed to meet Minister Lavrov on February 24th this week to discuss respective concerns about European security. However, with the invasion having started and Russia clearly refusing diplomacy altogether, it is meaningless to pursue the meeting at this point." He added, "I consulted with allies and partners, and everyone agreed."

U.S. President Joe Biden, in a speech that afternoon, declared that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has begun and announced sanctions against Russian financial institutions, national debt, leadership, and their families.

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