U.S. Secretary of State to visit Moscow on April 11
The Russian Foreign Ministry confirms the visit of U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Moscow early next week.
“On April 11-12, U.S. Secretary of State Tillerson will visit Moscow on a working trip. This is his first visit to our country as the head of the foreign policy department of the Donald Trump’s administration," reads the statement on the web site of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
During the talks between Secretary of State and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, which are scheduled for April 12, the sides will discuss the fight against terrorism, the settlement of the Syrian and Arab-Israeli conflicts, the situation in Afghanistan and Ukraine, and the issue of arms control.
As noted by the Russian Foreign Ministry, the Russian side will raise the topic of "irritants in the bilateral sphere of relations" during Tillerson’s visit.
"The conversation will focus on the need to eliminate numerous irritants in the bilateral sphere of relations, such as the arrest of Russian citizens by US intelligence services in third countries, the violation of the rights of Russian foster children in the United States, and the creation of artificial difficulties for our diplomats to fulfill their official duties,” the Department of Information and the Press of the Russian Foreign Ministry stated.
The US State Department, in turn, said that the upcoming trip is "part of our effort to maintain direct lines of communication with senior Russian officials and to ensure U.S. views are clearly conveyed, including on next steps in Minsk implementation."