Progress on pause: dialogue between Russia and the United States on "irritants" has stalled

Moscow and Washington are not yet planning a new round of negotiations to eliminate "irritants" in bilateral relations, the US Embassy in Russia told Izvestia. The previous stage was completed at the end of last year, but the main issues, including the return of Russian diplomatic property, were not resolved. An inter-parliamentary dialogue was launched in March, and work continues on the economic line. In particular, American companies are expected at SPIEF 2026, and congressmen may also participate, Izvestia learned. However, experts believe that serious breakthroughs in relations with Washington should not be expected before the conflict in Ukraine is resolved.

Dialogue between Russia and the United States on normalization of relations

The Russian-American dialogue on eliminating "irritants" in bilateral relations is not actually progressing. A new round of negotiations on the restoration of the embassies is not yet planned, the US diplomatic mission in Moscow confirmed to Izvestia.

— Our discussions with our Russian colleagues focused on restoring the functioning of our diplomatic missions in Moscow and Washington, rather than on the broader normalization/improvement of our relations. However, currently no upcoming negotiations in this format are planned," the American diplomatic mission said.

The last round was held at the end of last year, before that, negotiations were held in Istanbul on February 27 and April 10, 2025.

Following the talks in December, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov noted that the next round was tentatively scheduled for spring, but the main issues remained in limbo. He did not rule out that further progress would require additional impulses at the political level. Earlier in an interview with Izvestia, Ryabkov clarified that Moscow and Washington had already managed to resolve the most "acute, glaring problems" concerning visas, delegation exchanges and financial services for foreign institutions.

The key issue for Moscow remains the return of Russian diplomatic property. In 2017, six facilities were arrested in the United States as part of anti-Russian sanctions, for example, the Consulate General in Seattle. There is no progress on this issue, as the United States considers the arrested facilities as a lever of pressure. In addition, there is no progress with the restoration of direct flights. In February, it became known that Moscow had submitted its proposals to Washington to restore air traffic. Now the solution to this issue depends on the political will of the White House.

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Prospects for improving relations between Moscow and Washington

Negotiations through diplomatic agencies are not the only channel of communication between the Russian Federation and the United States. For example, Kirill Dmitriev, the special representative of the President of the Russian Federation, conducts a dialogue on economic issues. As Dmitry Peskov explained, "Moscow and Washington could already be engaged in mutually beneficial projects, which could be very much on the agenda."

"We believe that it is absolutely not necessary to wait for a settlement in Ukraine," the Kremlin official said.

Among the promising areas are the joint development of the Arctic, energy projects and the extraction of rare metals. Earlier, Vladimir Putin noted that Russia is ready to offer American and other foreign partners participation in projects for the extraction of rare earth metals, including in Donbas and Novorossiya.

However, in the current conditions, it is difficult to imagine the restoration of relations between the Russian Federation and the United States without resolving the Ukrainian issue, Konstantin Sukhoverkhov, the INF program manager, told Izvestia.

"One way or another, all interaction should be built through a trusting framework, and this trust will need to be confirmed precisely by reducing tensions around Ukraine, since this is an extremely important topic for both sides," the political scientist stressed.

Since the beginning of 2025, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump have held 10 telephone conversations, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio have called nine times. In addition, last year, the two presidents held a personal meeting in Alaska, where the focus was on resolving the conflict in Ukraine.

At least six times, the Russian leader hosted the American special envoy Steve Witkoff. According to the NYT, in the future, American negotiators plan to visit Russia again for talks on Ukraine.

Meanwhile, another important channel for cooperation has recently been activated — interparliamentary relations. In March, a delegation of Russian State Duma deputies led by Vyacheslav Nikonov met with members of the U.S. Congress and administration officials. The deputies discussed a wide range of issues and agreed to maintain contacts.

They may take place in the near future — at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in June, where Russian parliamentarians have invited their colleagues.

— There was a proposal to invite them to the St. Petersburg Economic Forum. It was announced to them, and they said: "We will determine the dates and look at them," Svetlana Zhurova, first deputy chairman of the Duma's International affairs committee, who participated in the meeting in Washington, told Izvestia.

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In what areas is bilateral cooperation possible?

However, for the visit of American parliamentarians, it may be necessary to indefinitely lift the retaliatory personal sanctions of the Russian Federation, she said.

At a minimum, the American side will be represented at the business level at the SPIEF. Companies from the United States are expected to attend the forum, the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia told Izvestia.

The main point of such interparliamentary communication is to convey one's position, real solutions are hardly possible due to the fact that the majority in the US Congress takes a Russophobic position, said Vladimir Shapovalov, deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics at Moscow State University.

Despite the great potential, the prospects for improving relations remain low. Washington has not given up on putting pressure on Moscow. For example, sanctions were imposed against Lukoil and Rosneft, the Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty was terminated, and Russia's strategic partners Venezuela and Iran were attacked. At the same time, the White House's ability to influence its NATO allies and Ukraine has been overestimated.