Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov landed in Tehran on Tuesday for talks with Iranian officials, Iranian state media reported, days after Moscow held initial talks with the U.S. just a month after Donald Trump returned to the White House.

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as they are flanked by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Turkey, February 24, 2025. Murat Cetinmuhurdar/PPO/Handout via REUTERS

ANKARA - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov here on Monday as Turkiye intensified its efforts to mediate a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine conflict.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday that Moscow was open to negotiations on ending the war against Ukraine but would only halt fighting when a peace settlement "suits" its interests. Lavrov,

Turkey has offered to host negotiations “between both parties” to end the war in Ukraine after backing an American push for peace. As the war enters its fourth year, the offer follows talks between the foreign ministers of Russia and Turkey in Ankara on Monday and a new US-led drive to end the conflict that has taken a sharp turn in Moscow’s