Russian-American consultations have begun in Istanbul

The second round of consultations between Russian and US delegations began at 10:00 local time (11:00 Baku time) in Istanbul. They are taking place in the building of the Russian Consulate General, TASS reports.

The Russian delegation at the consultations is headed by Ambassador to Washington Alexander Darchiev, and the American delegation is led by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Sonata Coulter.

The previous Russian-American consultations took place in Istanbul on February 27 at the residence of the US Consul General and lasted more than six hours. As noted in the statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry following the meeting, "the discussions were held in a substantive and businesslike manner." The diplomatic department added that it was "agreed to continue the dialogue through this channel".