Alexander Darchiev says sides will focus on alleviating 'irritants' in bilateral diplomatic relations
Russia's Ambassador to the US announced Tuesday that a new round of talks between the two countries will take place in Moscow.
Speaking in an interview with the Russian state news agency TASS, Alexander Darchiev said the decision was "preliminary" and that the main topic remains the same -- alleviating "irritants" in bilateral diplomatic relations.
As for the time, he said the event will take place "in the nearest future."
"I've already mentioned that the recovery of Russian-American relations is still distant, and the process is hampered not only by opponents of the White House, embodied by the 'deep state,' but also by 'hawks' in Congress, where a persistent anti-Russian lobby exists," Darchiev said.
Consultations aimed at normalizing the operations of Russian and US embassies and addressing obstacles in bilateral relations took place in Istanbul on Feb. 27 and April 10. The Russian delegation was led by Darchiev, while the US delegation was headed by Sonata Coulter, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs.
"Importantly, however, there is still forward momentum, albeit entirely reversible, reflected in a tangible outcome such as the preliminary decision made during the last round of consultations on April 10 in Istanbul to relocate them to the capitals," he said.
"I can confirm that the next round of negotiations between delegations will take place in the very near future in Moscow."
Following the first round, Washington approved Darchiev's nomination as Russia's ambassador to the US.
After the second round, both sides exchanged notes containing assurances of guaranteed banking services for diplomatic missions and agreed on further measures to ease visa issuance and mobility for diplomats.
According to Darchiev, Moscow emphasized the priority of expeditiously recovering Russian diplomatic property confiscated in the US.
