External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee met with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in the northeast Chinese city of Harbin on Wednesday.

The meeting took place at the initiative of the Russian side, sources said.

Details of their talks were not available.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the third standalone meeting of the foreign ministers of India, China and Russia [Images] in Harbin, capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

During his Russian visit earlier this month, Mukherjee could not meet Lavrov, and media reports claimed that the cold reception to the Indian minister was a rebuff.

The Indian government, however, suggested that the meetings could not not take place because of schedule constraints of Russian leaders.