A White House statement said that US President Donald Trump warned Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during his visit to Washington against Russia's interference in the upcoming US presidential elections.

"President Trump warned against any attempt by Russia to interfere in the American elections, and called on Russia to resolve the dispute with Ukraine," the White House said - in a statement issued at the end of the closed meeting held at the White House between Trump and Lavrov on Tuesday.

But Lavrov was quick to deny the announcement by the White House, when he said - during a press conference he held in Washington after his meeting with Trump - "In fact, we did not talk about the elections."

US intelligence agencies have unanimously accused Moscow of meddling in the 2016 presidential election, which Trump won, and suspicions have recently emerged that Russia may interfere again in the 2020 elections.

Lavrov declined to answer questions about the progress of the investigation with President Trump and the possibility of his trial in Parliament, and also revealed that his country will put forward a Chinese initiative to resume dialogue between the United States and North Korea.

Pompeo (right) assured Lavrov that his country was unwilling to renew the "START 3" treaty as it stood (French)

START 3
On the other hand, Lavrov met his American counterpart, Mike Pompeo, and confirmed during a joint press conference that his country believes that it is better to renew the "START 3" treaty, in order to limit strategic weapons in their current form, while continuing to negotiate an alternative, warning that their absence has a negative impact on Global stability.

As for Pompeo, he said that his country is unwilling to renew the treaty in its current form, but rather wants to reach a new treaty that addresses the threats of the current era.

He added that the treaty signed with Russia, which expires in February 2021, was signed under various strategic balances, and that the new treaty should not only include new powers such as China, but rather address the modern threats of strategic balance.