Pentagon chief tells Russia’s Shoigu he rejects any Russian pretext for escalation

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in a phone call on Sunday that he “rejected any pretext for Russian escalation” in Ukraine, the Pentagon said.

Shoigu told his French, Turkish and British counterparts of Moscow’s concern that Ukraine could detonate a “dirty bomb,” according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

(Reporting by Eric Beech; Editing by Mark Porter)