Delegations from Russia and the US will hold a second round of consultations in Istanbul today to normalize the work of the diplomatic missions of the two countries.
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce explained that there were no "political or security issues" in the plans for the meeting, and Ukraine "is absolutely not on the agenda".
The first such meeting took place on February 27, and the conversation behind closed doors for the press lasted more than six hours.
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, announced that representatives of the foreign policy departments of both countries would participate in the meeting. "The ongoing substantial work to remove numerous obstacles, including technical ones, that make it difficult for diplomats to work, will continue," she noted.
The Russian delegation will again be led by Alexander Darchiev, currently Russia's ambassador to the United States, and in February - director of the North Atlantic Department of the Foreign Ministry. The American side, as in the first round of consultations, will be represented by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Sonata Coulter.
The meeting will be hosted by the Russian Consulate General in Turkey's largest city.
Darchiev said that Moscow is ready for "serious talks on the return of illegally seized diplomatic property to the Russian side", which for Russia is "key" to the return of the overall normalization of bilateral relations.
Among the main issues that the delegations will also have to discuss are the movement of diplomats in the host country, visa and financial restrictions. According to Darchiev, it is about getting rid of the "toxic legacy" of the previous American administration, which "established strict frameworks" for the activities of Russian diplomatic missions in the United States. As a result, as the ambassador in Washington noted, “the knot of problems that the Russian and American delegations are now jointly untangling“ has tightened.
The Russian delegation will raise the practical issue of resuming direct air traffic between Russia and the United States, which was also discussed at the meeting in February. According to Darchiev, this will not only give a boost to official contacts, but will also stimulate business and “make life easier for ordinary people on both sides of the ocean“.
From Darchiev's comments on the eve of the meeting, it became clear that contacts between Moscow and Washington on the work of the embassies have already yielded the first practical results. He said that there is “some progress“ in visa issuance and travel restrictions, but still need to find “ways to fundamentally change the situation for the better“.
The Russian ambassador in Washington also noted that thanks to the “window of opportunity“ opened by the presidents of the two countries, it is now possible to agree on a mutual basis guarantees for banking services for the diplomatic missions of Russia and the United States, “including the uninterrupted nature of transactions intended for them from the capitals, which also applies to Russian contributions to the budgets of the UN and other international organizations“.