Ukraine war: US, Russian ministers talk for 2nd time in 3 days; Shoigu's 'uncontrolled escalation' threat

In a fresh ray of hope, top American and Russian ministers spoke for the second time in 3 days regarding the war in Ukraine. Russia's defence minister Sergei Shoigu spoke with US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin on 23 October 2022, after a call on 21 October.

The Russian minister also spoke with counterparts from three NATO countries. While Moscow did not reveal details of the call with Washington, the Russian defence ministry said that Shoigu told his French counterpart that the situation in Ukraine is "rapidly deteriorating", and "trending towards further uncontrolled escalation".

Shoigu also spoke to Turkish and British defence ministers.

While not showing signs of a positive development, the calls show that despite angry words from both sides, Russia and NATO are maintaining contact even as the war in Ukraine worsens.

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