European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the Ukraine war, Iran and China on Tuesday in their first phone call since the Trump administration took office on Jan.

The European Union renewed on Monday its wide-ranging sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine, after Hungary stopped holding up the move in return for a declaration on energy security.

Russia is posing an existential threat to the European Union's security and to only way to address that is to increase spending on defence, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday, adding that the EU had for too long offered Russia alternatives.

The sanctions up for renewal include all sector-based bans on trade as well as the measures that immobilised Russia's central bank assets. Legally, EU countries must unanimously vote to renew these restrictions every six months.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the Ukraine war, Iran and China on Tuesday in their first phone call since the Trump administration took office on 20 January.

The European Union has agreed to prolong for 6 months a raft of sanctions aimed at depriving Russia of funds to finance its war against Ukraine.

Officials said Ms Kallas and Mr Rubio agreed on the need to maintain "maximum pressure on Moscow" over it's war on Ukraine. Read more at straitstimes.com.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said she expected the bloc to renew its sanctions on Russia on Monday after Hungary signalled it would stop holding up the move in return for assurances about energy security.

The European Union extended its sanctions on Russia due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Hungary had delayed the decision, seeking assurances on energy security. The renewed sanctions aim to disrupt Russia's finances,

Kaja Kallas, the European Union's top diplomat, spoke by phone with Marco Rubio, the incoming US Secretary of State. Source: Kaja Kallas on X (Twitter), as reported by European Pravda Details: Kallas described the discussion with Rubio as a "good call".

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed global challenges like the Ukraine war, Iran, and China during their first call since the Trump administration began.