International relations – US and Russia prepare for summit between Biden and Putin

Russia and the United States on Monday held preparatory talks in Geneva for a summit between US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The White House and the Russian Security Council have discussed a number of issues between Biden’s security adviser Jake Sullivan and Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Badrushev, the DOS agency said. The main issue is strategic stability. The White House said the meeting was an important step in preparing for a US / Russia summit. Location and date will be announced later.

Sullivan and Badrushev met in Geneva on Monday. “The discussions were constructive and, despite the differences, helped to better understand each other’s positions,” the statement said. “The parties are confident that mutually acceptable solutions can be found in many areas.” It was agreed that “normalization of US-Russian relations is in the interests of both countries and will contribute to global prognosis and stability.”

The Swiss “Tages-Unsiger” reports that the two will meet in Switzerland. A US delegation has already traveled to Geneva. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov met in Reykjavik, Iceland last Wednesday. Biden proposed a summit for Putin in Europe in June. The Kremlin has so far kept open whether Putin will meet with Biden.