Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, May 17 /Xinhua/ — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the results of the talks in Istanbul in a telephone conversation on Saturday, according to a statement on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s website.
“On May 17, at the initiative of the American side, a telephone conversation took place between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation S. V. Lavrov and the US Secretary of State M. Rubio,” the diplomatic department reported. “The heads of the foreign policy departments exchanged opinions on the results of the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations held the day before in Istanbul.”
As indicated on Smolenskaya Square, M. Rubio “welcomed the agreements on the exchange of prisoners of war and on the preparation by each side of its vision of the conditions necessary for reaching a truce, and emphasized Washington’s readiness to continue to facilitate the search for a settlement.”
S. Lavrov, in turn, “noted the positive role of the United States, which contributed to Kyiv ultimately accepting the proposal of Russian President V.V. Putin to resume the Istanbul negotiations,” and also confirmed Moscow’s readiness to continue working together with American colleagues in this context.
“During the conversation, some other international and regional issues were also touched upon. The interlocutors exchanged opinions on the continuation of Russian-American contacts,” the Russian Foreign Ministry concluded.
The talks between representatives of Russia and Ukraine that took place on Friday lasted almost two hours. Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, who heads the Russian delegation, announced a large-scale prisoner exchange — 1,000 for 1,000 — with Ukraine. According to him, the parties agreed to present their vision of a possible future ceasefire. During the talks, the Ukrainian side requested a meeting of the heads of state, and Russia took this into account. V. Medinsky also stated Russia’s readiness to continue negotiations with Ukraine. –0–