Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in a meeting at the Pentagon on July 8, 2024. (Jack Sanders/Defense Department )

WASHINGTON – Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday talked with the Russian defense minister for the second time in less than a month, the Pentagon said.

Austin and Andrei Belousov last spoke on June 25, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters. The call on Friday was initiated by Belousov.

No other details were provided about the call. Singh said Austin emphasized the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine. The Russian defense ministry in a statement said the two sides discussed lowering the risk of “possible escalation” of hostilities in Europe, Agence France-Presse reported.

The latest conversation between the two defense leaders followed the conclusion of the NATO summit this week in Washington to mark the 75th anniversary of the military alliance and bolster support for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

During President Joe Biden’s news conference Thursday evening at the summit, he said he has “no good reason” now to talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Is Putin ready to talk? I’m not ready to talk to Putin unless Putin is ready to change his behavior,” Biden said.

The NATO summit also set the stage for several announcements about enhancing defensive capabilities in Europe.

The U.S. on Thursday announced a new $225 million military aid package for Ukraine that will include another Patriot air-defense system as well as artillery rounds and other ammunition. Austin on Wednesday said Ukraine will be flying F-16s “this summer” following the delivery of the long-awaited fighter jets by the Netherlands and Denmark.

The White House in a statement Wednesday said the United States will begin episodic deployments of the long-range fire capabilities for its Multi-Domain Task Force in Germany in 2026. The statement added that is part of a plan to establish an “enduring stationing of these capabilities in the future” and serve as deterrence against Russian aggression in Eastern Europe.

“When fully developed, these conventional long-range fires units will include SM-6 and Tomahawk [missiles], and developmental hypersonic weapons, which have significantly longer range than current land-based fires in Europe,” the statement said.