US Secretary of State Rubio says Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov asked him to convey message to Trump

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov asked him during a phone call on Monday 25 May to pass on a message from Russian ruler Vladimir Putin to US President Donald Trump that Russia would strike Kyiv.

According to Rubio, he and Lavrov discussed Russia's call for staff of foreign diplomatic missions to leave Kyiv ahead of new Russian strikes.

Rubio said the Russians had sent the warning to all embassies, not just the US, but also that Lavrov had called him personally to deliver the message directly.

"Putin wanted – had asked him to call me to relay the message directly to the president (Trump – ed.), which I did, but obviously we had already seen the notice sent out to all the diplomatic facilities," Rubio said.

He added that there is currently no set schedule for peace negotiations aimed at ending Russia's war against Ukraine but that "the US is always prepared to play a constructive and helpful role".

"Every time you see these big strikes from one side or the other, it's a reminder of why this is a terrible war that's now gone on longer than the Second World War, and it needs to come to an end. The US stands ready and prepared to help do whatever we can to help facilitate the end of this war, and hopefully the opportunity will present itself at some point," Rubio said.

On 25 May, Lavrov called Rubio and officially informed the American side that the Russians were beginning "systematic strikes" on facilities in Kyiv supposedly used for the needs of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Amid the new Russian threats, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine said it was ready to provide assistance in strengthening security for foreign diplomatic missions that request such support.

EU Ambassador to Kyiv Katarína Mathernová stated that Western diplomats would not leave Kyiv despite Russia's threats of further strikes on the city.