WASHINGTON, June 24. /TASS/. Washington's postponement of a new round of talks with Moscow on eliminating irritants in bilateral relations does not signal that US President Donald has changed course on thawing relations between Moscow and Washington, researcher at the Washington-based Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft Mark Episkopos told TASS.
"There is nothing to suggest a shift in the White House thinking when it comes to the need, repeatedly identified by President Trump, to ease tensions with Russia," the expert said.
"This pause can rather be explained by the fact that the administration’s attention is currently focused on handling the immediate, near-term challenges presented by the Iran-Israel crisis," Episkopos noted.
On February 27 and April 10, two rounds of negotiations took place in Istanbul, focusing on restoring the functionality of the Russian and US embassies and addressing various bilateral concerns. During these consultations, Russia’s Ambassador to Washington Alexander Darchiev led the Russian delegation, while Sonata Coulter, the deputy assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, headed the US team.
The Russian and US delegations were expected to meet once again in Moscow. However, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on June 16 that the planned negotiations between Russia and the United States had been postponed due to Washington’s desire to "take a break." Zakharova expressed hope that this pause would not be too long.
Moscow assumes that the third round will take place in the near future, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in a June 24 interview with the Izvestia newspaper. He noted that the time and location will be coordinated, "but it is important that the US side also recognizes the need to continue such efforts."