As a U.S. senator, Marco Rubio supported foreign aid and praised the U.S. Agency for International Development, aka USAID. Since he became secretary of state and USAID’s acting director, Rubio has criticized the agency and described it as fraught with "rank insubordination" and a hindrance to the president’s foreign policy efforts.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the talks between Rubio and Lavrov “will focus primarily on restoring the entire complex of Russian-American relations.” He added that they will also cover preparations for possible negotiations to resolve the war in Ukraine.