Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Sunday that US and Russian officials will hold another round of talks on improving relations sometime over the next week.
“We are open to contacts with the American side, in particular, to address the irritants in bilateral relations. We expect real progress when the meeting scheduled for the end of the coming week takes place,” Ryabkov said, according to RT.
During high-level talks in Saudi Arabia on February 18, the US and Russia agreed to take steps to normalize diplomatic relations and to work to end the war in Ukraine. Ryabkov said there are now “quite a lot of contacts” between the two countries.
President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are expected to meet in person soon, but it’s unclear when that might happen. Both leaders invited the other to visit their respective countries when they spoke on the phone earlier this month, but the first summit will likely happen in a third country.
It remains unclear what sort of deal could be reached to end the war in Ukraine. The Trump administration has acknowledged that two of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s main demands — Ukrainian NATO membership and a return to pre-2014 borders — are unrealistic, but so far, the Ukrainian leader doesn’t seem willing to make significant concessions.
In the meantime, the fighting in Ukraine continues to rage along the frontlines, and Russia continues to launch heavy bombardments. On Sunday, the Ukrainian military said Russia fired a “record” 267 drones into Ukraine overnight.
