Russia begins Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's Moscow visit with a warning not to bomb Syria again

Sergey Lavrov and Rex Tillerson meet in Moscow

(Image credit: Alexander Nemenov/AFP/Getty Images)

published 12 April 2017

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday morning, amid growing U.S.-Russia tensions over Syria. The meeting started off with a warning from Lavrov, who said Russia has "seen very alarming actions recently with an unlawful attack against Syria," and considers it "of utmost importance" the U.S. refrain from "similar actions in the future." Tillerson acknowledged the "sharp differences" between Russia and the U.S., adding "We both have agreed our lines of communication shall always remain open."

At a G7 summit in Italy on Tuesday, Tillerson had issued Russia an ultimatum, saying it must side with the U.S. and other Western nations or with Syria, Iran, and Hezbollah; Russia President Vladimir Putin responded by inviting the foreign ministers of Syria and Iran to Moscow on Friday. "Our policy is consistent and it's formulated exclusively on the basis of international law," Lavrov told Tillerson on Wednesday, "and not under the impact of current opportunistic motives or false choice: 'You are with us or against us.'"

Russia has not said whether Tillerson will meet with Putin during his two-day visit. Putin once personally awarded Tillerson an "Order of Friendship" medal, but on Wednesday he said Russia's already poor working relationship with the U.S. has "most likely has degraded" since President Trump took office in January. Trump, in a Fox Business Network interview to air Wednesday morning, said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is "an animal" and warned Putin he's "backing a person that's truly an evil person. And I think that's very bad for Russia, I think that's very bad for mankind, it's very bad for this world."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.

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