Russia Seeks Dialogue with US on Resuming Direct Flights

Moscow seeks dialogue with Washington on resuming direct flights between the two countries, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said, The Caspian Post reports, citing TASS.

"There are a number of long-standing problems on which we have been unable to make tangible progress yet. In particular, it’s about easing the rules for Russian diplomatic workers to allow them to travel beyond the 25-mile radius of the diplomatic missions. The Americans initially opposed discussing the return of the illegally seized Russian diplomatic properties but as a result of hard work by our negotiators, they agreed to think about a roadmap on the issue," Ryabkov pointed out.

"To put it mildly, at this point, they are not very enthusiastic about Russia’s proposal to resume direct flights between our countries but we continue efforts to engage the US in substantive dialogue on the matter. That said, there is a lot to do to address the problems that have piled up. The date of the next round of consultations on irritants is currently under discussion," the senior diplomat added.

Ryabkov also noted that in accordance with the two presidents’ orders, Russia and the US had held two rounds of consultations on ways to remove irritants "in order to improve the operation of both countries’ diplomatic missions." "In practical terms, we have been able to agree on and exchange notes on unhindered funding for the two countries’ diplomatic missions and the secure transfer of funds denominated in US dollars. There has also been some progress on the issuance of visas, which used to take a year and a half to two years," he added.