Moscow, Washington seek cooperation amid tensions

HELSINKI, Finland－Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met for the first time on Wednesday, expressing willingness to cooperate but also admitted "serious differences" amid tense relations between the two countries.

Meeting with his counterpart on the sidelines of the Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik, Lavrov said Moscow and Washington have to decide on their further cooperation despite "serious differences" in a series of issues.

"We have serious differences in the assessment of the international situation. We have serious differences in the approaches to the tasks which have to be solved for its normalization," Lavrov said.