KUALA LUMPUR: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with his Russian counterpart in Malaysia on Thursday, after Moscow unleashed its second major attack on Ukraine in as many days.

Rubio’s first visit to Asia as secretary of state also comes as US President Donald Trump ramps up his trade war, threatening more than 20 countries with punitive tariffs.

The top US diplomat is to meet Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of a meeting of foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Kuala Lumpur, a senior State Department official said.

Russian strikes on Kyiv killed at least two people, the city’s military administration said Thursday, after earlier warning of incoming missiles and reporting around a dozen wounded.

AFP journalists in Kyiv heard loud blasts echoing over the city throughout the night and saw flashes from air defense system lighting up the sky.