WASHINGTON — What is it about Sergey V. Lavrov that always makes high-ranking American officials look hapless?

In 2006, Mr. Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, put Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in an awkward position when technicians did not turn off the microphones at a lunch in Moscow. Reporters overheard the two of them bickering over American policy in Iraq. “What does that mean?” she said at one point. “I think you understand,” he replied.

Three years later, Hillary Clinton commemorated her first meeting with Mr. Lavrov after she became secretary of state by presenting him with a gag gift, a bright red button, stamped with what she said was the Russian word for “reset.” “You got it wrong,” he scolded, pointing to the faulty translation as cameras flashed. “It means overcharged.”

On Wednesday, he put Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson in a bad spot after a reporter asked if President Trump’s dismissal of the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, hours earlier would “cast a shadow” over their meeting. Mr. Tillerson turned away without answering, but Mr. Lavrov wisecracked: “Was he fired? You’re kidding! You’re kidding!”