Kremlin denies Lavrov fell out of favor with Putin after canceled Trump summit
Speculation that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov fell out of favor with Russian President Vladimir Putin is not true, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Nov. 7.
"I will give you a brief answer: there is nothing true in these reports," Peskov told Russian media during a briefing. "Absolutely. Lavrov is working as the foreign minister, of course."
The denial comes amid reports that Lavrov's influence had waned after a conversation with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, which reportedly led to the cancellation of the planned Budapest summit between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Despite being a permanent member of the Russian Security Council, Lavrov was notably absent from a key meeting chaired by Putin on Nov. 5, raising questions about his standing within the Kremlin.
The top diplomat also lost his status as head of the Russian delegation at the G20 summit. This year, it will be led by Maxim Oreshkin, deputy head of Russia's presidential administration.
Lavrov spoke with Rubio by phone on Oct. 21 to discuss terms for the Budapest summit. After that, Rubio reportedly recommended that the U.S. president cancel the planned meeting.
Sources familiar with the talks earlier told Reuters the cancellation stemmed from the Kremlin's rigid negotiating stance, which demanded excessive concessions and refused to accept a ceasefire in Ukraine.
The summit's collapse was followed by the first U.S. sanctions on Russia since Trump's return to office, targeting oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil.
