US and Russia hold second meeting this month: What’s known about the talks
Photo: The US and Russia met for the second time in a month for talks (Getty Images)
The United States and Russia are holding their second meeting in a month. Today, their representatives gathered in Istanbul and, as officially stated, will discuss the “normalizing the work of embassies” of the two countries.
RBC-Ukraine has gathered the latest information about the second round of talks between the US and Russia.
What to know about the second meeting between the US and Russia
Pro-Kremlin media wrote that the Russian delegation had arrived for talks with the United States on the work of embassies. They are taking place in Istanbul, Türkiye. The talks will be closed to the press. The composition of the delegations was also not disclosed.
The Russians claim that the talks have already begun. They say that they were scheduled to begin at 10 am local time (09:00 Kyiv time).
The day before, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the meeting would be attended by “high-level diplomats and experts.” He added that the meeting would allegedly make it “clear” how the parties “can move quickly and effectively.”
A technical meeting between the American and Russian delegations is taking place in Istanbul today, according to Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Öncü Keçeli.
It was not reported the parties would discuss the war in Ukraine. Türkiye emphasized that it is “ready to provide all possible support to peace efforts.”
How did the first round of talks in Saudi Arabia end?
On February 18, 2025, negotiations between the US and Russian delegations took place in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, and lasted approximately 4.5 hours. It was the first meeting of this level since the beginning of Russia's full-scale aggression against Ukraine.
The US side was represented by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff. The Russians were represented by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov, and the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund Kirill Dmitriev.
The parties agreed to create a “consultation mechanism to address the shortcomings in bilateral relations” and “appoint high-level teams to work on ending the war in Ukraine as soon as possible.”
Following the meeting, the US Secretary of State said that in order to end any conflict, “all parties must make concessions, and it is important to determine what those concessions are.”
Moscow and Washington also agreed to restore the number of staff at their embassies. As Rubio said, effective communication depends on the work of diplomatic channels, otherwise all negotiations on Ukraine may come to a standstill.
For its part, Russia also issued statements. Lavrov claims that the United States allegedly offered Russia to “impose a moratorium on strikes on energy facilities,” but Moscow refused.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized the US-Russia talks, noting that the United States had helped Putin break out of international isolation. He emphasized the need for Ukraine and European countries to participate in such negotiations to ensure fair and sustainable security solutions.
In contrast, US President Donald Trump spoke sharply about Ukraine's absence from the talks in Saudi Arabia. Commenting on Kyiv's possible disappointment over its absence from the talks, he said that he was “disappointed” because of the long duration of the war.
“I'm really disappointed in what's happened. I've been watching this for 3 years. It's a war that would have never happened if I was president...They're upset about not having a seat. Well, they've had a seat for 3 years,” Trump said, adding that he was able to ”end this war.”
Read more about the results of the talks between the US and Russia in Riyadh in a separate RBC-Ukraine article.
Sources: Meduza, RIA Novosti, TASS, and AP News.
