Russian and U.S. teams are scheduled to meet this week to discuss enhancing relations, following a period that saw ties deteriorate to levels not seen since the Cold War, according to a senior Russian diplomat on Sunday.
After significant Russian advancements in Ukraine last year, President Donald Trump expressed a desire to end the conflict, which he stated has resulted in significant casualties.
On February 12, Trump and President Vladimir Putin discussed improving relations and resolving the conflict. Subsequently, officials from both countries met in Riyadh on February 18 with the same objectives in mind.
Sergei Ryabkov, the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister overseeing U.S. relations, mentioned that a meeting among senior officials will take place by the week's end.
"We are open to engaging with the American side to address bilateral issues," Ryabkov stated in remarks reported by state news agency TASS. "We are hopeful for tangible progress following the planned meeting next week."
Trump has consistently suggested that Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy are willing to make a deal.
Stating that NATO membership for Ukraine is not feasible, Trump endorsed U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's stance that a return to Ukraine's 2014 borders is not realistic.
As the conflict surpasses its third year, Russia currently controls nearly a fifth of Ukraine's territory, including Crimea which was annexed in 2014, along with majority portions of the Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions and over 99% of the Luhansk region.
Russia asserts that these territories are now part of Russian land, governed by Russian law and protected by the Russian military umbrella. Conversely, Ukraine and its Western allies have adamantly refused to acknowledge or accept this claim.
In June of the previous year, Putin outlined conditions for ending the conflict, requiring Ukraine to renounce its NATO aspirations officially and withdraw troops from the regions disputed and predominantly occupied by Russia.