Russia and Germany Hold First Foreign Ministers’ Talks Since 2022 at UN

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul during a diplomatic meeting. Photo credit: AI-generated illustrative image created for IndrajitGlobalnews.

 UNITED NATIONS – Russia and Germany’s foreign ministers held their first direct talks since before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul met on Saturday as relations between Moscow and Berlin remain strained over the war in Ukraine and a series of recent security disputes.

The meeting was significant because high-level diplomatic contacts between Russia and Germany have been severely limited since the February 2022 invasion. Germany has remained a strong supporter of Ukraine, while Moscow and Berlin have increasingly exchanged accusations over security and political issues.

According to officials from both countries, the ministers discussed bilateral relations as well as the war in Ukraine. The German delegation also raised the issue of Black Sea grain exports. Wadephul urged Russia to do everything possible to help reach an agreement that would allow grain exports through the Black Sea to resume.

The issue has become increasingly important because Russian and Ukrainian attacks on vessels and port infrastructure have disrupted Black Sea trade. Germany has argued that restoring grain exports could help reduce pressure on food supplies, particularly in countries that depend heavily on imports.

Wadephul also used the meeting to call on Moscow to step away from what Germany describes as an escalating confrontation with Germany, Europe and NATO. A German delegation source said the minister stressed that incidents involving alleged hybrid attacks would not weaken Berlin’s support for Ukraine. 

The talks came after relations between Moscow and Berlin deteriorated further following an alleged drone incident involving Leipzig/Halle Airport in eastern Germany in August. Germany said Russia was responsible, while the Russian side rejected the allegation and described it as a provocation.

Lavrov gave a different assessment of the meeting. Speaking to reporters afterward, he said he had not heard anything from Wadephul that Germany had not already stated publicly. His comments suggested that the encounter did not immediately produce a breakthrough in the countries’ positions.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the meeting had been requested by the German side. The talks took place shortly before Lavrov addressed the UN General Assembly.

The meeting does not indicate that Russia and Germany have resolved their major disagreements over Ukraine, security or bilateral relations. Instead, it represents a rare direct diplomatic contact at a time when relations between the two countries remain deeply strained.

For Germany, the discussion provided an opportunity to communicate its position directly to Moscow, particularly on Ukraine and Black Sea grain exports. For Russia, the meeting offered a channel for direct communication with a major European government despite the continuing dispute over the war.

Whether the talks lead to further diplomatic contacts remains unclear. For now, both sides continue to hold sharply different positions on the war in Ukraine and wider European security.

Sources: Reuters, Associated Press, Al Jazeera and Anadolu reporting.