Top US, Russian Diplomats Meet in Iceland to Cooperate on 'Intersecting Interests'

The United States says it is ready to work with Russia to advance areas where the two nations have "intersecting interests," while continuing to defend U.S. interests and respond if Moscow acts aggressively against Washington and its allies.

"There are many areas where our interests intersect and overlap, and we believe that we can work together and indeed build on those interests — whether it is dealing with COVID-19 and the pandemic, climate change, the nuclear programs" in Iran and North Korea, or the peace process in Afghanistan, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday. Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met on the sidelines of the Arctic Council Ministerial session in Reykjavik, Iceland. "Our position is clear: We are prepared to discuss all issues on the table with an understanding that our discussions would be honest, factual and with mutual respect," Lavrov said, adding he is ready to discuss "the Russian [diplomatic] missions in the U.S. and the U.S. missions in Russia."