Russia’s top military brass reached out for a phone call with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin one day after the conclusion of the NATO summit in Washington.
A Pentagon spokesperson highlighted the importance of keeping open lines of communication, while the Russian Defense Ministry said the discussions focused on reducing the risk of “possible escalation.”
Department of Defense (DOD) deputy secretary Sabrina Singh said at a Pentagon press briefing on July 12 that earlier in the day, Russia’s Minister of Defense Andrey Belousov initiated a phone call with Mr. Austin and the two senior officials spoke for an undisclosed amount of time….