Blinken and Russia’s Lavrov clash on Ukraine at a security meeting in Malta

VALLETTA, Malta (AP) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has clashed indirectly with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at an annual security meeting, accusing the West of risking escalation to the war over Ukraine but walking out before Blinken and other speakers could respond. Lavrov was speaking Thursday at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe ministerial meeting in Malta on his first stop in an EU nation since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Lavrov accused the West of reviving the Cold War and provoking a direct conflict with Russia “with a far greater risk of its escalation into a hot phase.” Blinken, who spoke after Lavrov left the room, put the blame for escalation in the region back on Russia.