Istanbul: The U.S. and Russian delegations arrived in Istanbul on Thursday to normalize diplomatic missions after the Ukrainian war, which triggered the biggest confrontation between Moscow and the West since the depth of the Cold War.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said the talks will be led by Russia’s new Washington, Alexander Darchiev and Deputy Secretary of State Sonata Coulter.
According to Moscow and Washington, the main focus is on the work of the diplomatic mission after years of conduct, mutual claims of intimidation and even the freezing of diplomatic property, which restores the complex relationship between the two nuclear forces.
“Ukraine is not, it is definitely not the agenda,” State Department spokesman Tammy Bruce said on Tuesday.
“These negotiations focus only on the actions of our embassy, not on the bilateral relationship as a whole, which will only be as we have pointed out once there is peace between Russia and Ukraine.”
In recent years, Moscow and Washington have complained about obtaining diplomat certificates, making its embassy extremely difficult to operate.
Russia said it became difficult even paid diplomats due to Western restrictions, while U.S. diplomats said their movement was restricted by Russia. Both sides complained about intimidation.
The problem is diplomatic property.
Washington has put six Russian properties under restrictions, including the Kirentworth estate on Long Island, the pioneering point of Maryland, the Russian consul in San Francisco and Seattle, and trade missions in Washington and New York.
