Top U.S. and Russian Generals hold rare call amid Ukraine tensions

A top Russian general requested a call with the top U.S. military officer, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, which took place last week, according to Reuters. This marked the first communication between the two generals.

A spokesperson for General Brown confirmed that the call with Russian Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov occurred on November 27.

“The leaders discussed a number of global and regional security issues, including the ongoing conflict in Ukraine,” the spokesperson said. At Gerasimov’s request, Brown agreed not to proactively announce the discussion, according to the statement.

This was the first direct communication between Brown, who became the top U.S. general last year, and his Russian counterpart. The last such contact between Russian and U.S. military chiefs was between Gerasimov and Brown’s predecessor, Mark Milley.

The call comes during a period of heightened tensions. Ukraine recently used U.S. and British-made missiles to strike targets within Russian territory, actions that Moscow has warned would be considered a major escalation.