The U.S. and Russian defense chiefs spoke by telephone on Tuesday for the first time in more than a year and the two sides gave widely divergent accounts of the conversation.

The Pentagon said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov discussed the importance of open lines of communication.

Austin initiated the conversation and it was the first such call since March 2023, Pentagon spokesperson Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder told reporters.

Russia's Defense Ministry said Belousov warned Austin of the dangers of continued U.S. arms supplies to Ukraine in its 28-month-old conflict with Russia.