MOSCOW, August 1. /TASS/. The substantive discussion of the Ukrainian issue between Moscow and Washington since the beginning of the year is very useful and is yielding results, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
"The resumption of direct dialogue by the current US administration is fully in line with normal diplomatic practice. Rejecting it under Joe Biden was contrary to common sense. The substantive discussion of Ukrainian issues between Moscow and Washington that has been taking place since the beginning of the year is useful and yielding results. It is thanks to President Donald Trump's insistence that the Kiev regime agreed to our proposal to resume the Istanbul talks," the Foreign Ministry quoted Lavrov as saying on its website.
According to him, Russia has proposed creating working groups with Ukraine on political and military issues and is awaiting Kiev's response. "Three rounds have already taken place. In addition to important humanitarian agreements, we proposed creating working groups on political and military issues. This would be a significant step towards reaching sustainable agreements, as Russian President [Vladimir Putin] emphasized on August 1 during his meeting with [his Belarusian counterpart] Alexander Lukashenko at Valaam. We are waiting for a concrete reaction from Kiev," the top diplomat said.
