"Clearly, we began dialogue today," Sherman said.
It is also important that at the end of today's meeting Russia did not reject the idea of having more discussions with NATO, she added.
"I am glad Russia was at the NATO summit and heard what other 30 states had to say," she added.
"Today's meeting lasted nearly four hours. It ended with a sober challenge from the NATO allies to Russia...That challenge is to respond to the offers extended by the Secretary General of NATO, by the Polish chairman and office of the OSCE, by the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union, and by the President of the United States, to deescalate tensions, choose the path of diplomacy," Sherman told a press briefing.
"The United States and our NATO allies were united in our responses to Deputy Foreign Minister [Alexander] Grushko and Deputy Minister of Defence [Alexander] Fomin in their comments, including when it comes to certain core Russian proposals, that are simply nonstarters," Sherman told a press briefing.
On Nord Stream 2 Project
"The Germans federal network agency has suspended certification, and Secretary [Antony] Blinken has said, which underscores what Undersecretary [Victoria] Nuland said to quote the secretary from our perspective, it's very hard to see gas flowing through the pipeline for it to become operational. If Russia renews its aggression on Ukraine," she said.
"It is the Russian geopolitical project that undermines energy security and national security," she said.
In December, media reported that the United States is pressing Germany to halt the Nord Stream 2 pipeline should Russia invade Ukraine. However, the Kremlin said the pipeline was not mentioned during the virtual meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden in late 2021.
Nord Stream 2 is a joint venture of Gazprom, Royal Dutch Shell, OMV, Engie, Uniper and Wintershall. The project is designed to carry natural gas from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea. The pipeline was completed in September and is now undergoing certification in Germany, which has been stalled by the Federal Network Agency's demand to create a German subsidiary and then file a separate bid.