Slated for April 10, the meeting follows a first round of U.S.–Russia discussions hosted by Turkey in February.
U.S. and Russian officials will meet in Istanbul on April 10 to discuss means of stabilizing bilateral ties at the embassy level, Washington and Moscow have confirmed.
“These talks are solely focused on our embassy operations,” U.S. State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters on April 8.
Bruce went on to stress that the planned talks were not aimed at “normalizing a bilateral relationship overall, which can only happen … once there is peace between Russia and Ukraine.”
The Istanbul meeting, she said, would not extend to political or security issues or matters pertaining to the conflict in Ukraine.
“Ukraine is not, absolutely not, on the agenda,” she said.
Russia’s foreign ministry has also confirmed the upcoming meeting in Istanbul.
“I confirm that it will take place tomorrow,” ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters on April 9.
According to Zakharova, the Russian delegation will be headed by Alexander Darchiyev, Moscow’s newly appointed envoy to Washington, while the U.S. side will be led by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Sonata Coulter.
The spokeswoman said that the upcoming talks were aimed at “removing multiple obstacles, including technical ones, that hamper the activity of diplomats in the two countries.”
Since 2014, U.S.–Russia relations have steadily deteriorated, with both sides expelling each other’s diplomats, leaving their respective embassies in Moscow and Washington thinly staffed.
‘Substantive and Professional’
This week’s meeting in Istanbul follows a first round of talks, which were also held in the Turkish metropolis, on Feb. 27.
At that meeting, the U.S. and Russian delegations were led by Coulter and Darchiyev, respectively, before the latter was appointed envoy to Washington.
In a statement released after those talks, the U.S. State Department said that U.S. officials had “raised concerns” with their Russian counterparts “regarding access to banking and contracted services, as well as the need to ensure stable and sustainable staffing levels at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.”
“Through constructive discussions, both sides identified concrete initial steps to stabilize bilateral mission operations in these areas,” it said.
Moscow later described the discussions as “substantive and professional,” according to state-owned news agency TASS, saying both sides had agreed to “continue dialogue via this channel.”
According to a diplomatic source cited by TASS, the second round of talks will be held at the Russian Consulate in Istanbul’s Beyoglu district.
By Adam Morrow
