'Distorted the Reality': Russian Embassy Responds to State Dept's Statement

US Department of State spokeswoman Heather Nauert said earlier in the day that Tillerson has not received an invitation from the Russian officials to meet with Lavrov in Africa as both diplomats will be in Ethiopia at the same time.

"As Department of State spokeswoman Heather Nauert again has distorted the reality, we are forced to state that the request for a meeting between Sergey Lavrov and Rex Tillerson was sent to the State Department on March 2. Several times we tried to get a proper answer. So far, alas, unsuccessfully," the Russian Embassy wrote on Facebook.

In her statement, the Department of State spokesperson also said that the United States is not at a point where relations with Russia will normalize in the near future.

In December, US Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman has stated that the relations between the two countries were getting away from the lowest point, noting however that the countries still still needed to overcome disagreements. Later that month, Rex Tillerson said that President Donald Trump thought it was extremely important to establish a working relationship.