MOSCOW. Jan 19 (Interfax-AVN) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov telephoned U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to thank her for cooperation before the end of her term in office.
"The minister thanked Rice for cooperation during her service as U.S. secretary of state and said that, despite difficult periods in the development of Russian-American relations, when they acted in the spirit of mutual respect, the parties managed to make progress in resolving important issues on the bilateral agenda and successfully interact on the international arena," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday.