Kremlin announces meeting with US representatives in Istanbul

Representatives from Russia and the United States will meet in Istanbul on February 27 to discuss the functioning of their respective embassies, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has announced. Washington has not yet confirmed this meeting.

The planned discussion follows a previous meeting in Saudi Arabia on February 18, where both sides agreed to restore embassy staff in Moscow and Washington, as reported by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The State Department also outlined agreements, including the creation of a consultation mechanism to address irritants to bilateral relations and normalize diplomatic missions.

However, the German newspaper Die Zeit previously reported that a second round of talks was scheduled for February 25 in Saudi Arabia, which the Russian Foreign Ministry denied.

During the initial meeting, the U.S. and Russia agreed to form negotiation groups to discuss ending the war against Ukraine, though no updates have been provided on this matter.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine would not participate in these discussions and would not recognize any agreements made about Ukraine without its involvement.