"The teams of the United States and Ukraine are holding another round of talks in Riyadh to discuss a cease-fire in the Black Sea and the cessation of strikes on energy infrastructure for 30 days," the publication says.
According to AFP, on Tuesday, the parties began a new stage of discussions in Saudi Arabia.
The previous round of talks between representatives of the United States and Ukraine was held in Riyadh on Sunday.
The day before, an expert meeting of the "technical teams" of Moscow and Washington took place there. Russia was represented by Grigory Karasin, Head of the International Committee of the Federation Council, and Sergey Beseda, Adviser to the Director of the FSB.
As stated in the Kremlin, the main topic is the Black Sea Initiative, which was discussed during the last telephone conversation between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.
After the meeting, Karasin told RIA Novosti that the negotiations with the American delegation were difficult but constructive. Speaking about the dialogue on Ukraine, he stressed that the positions do not always coincide, but the parties will look for a form of interaction — such an opportunity has appeared. At the same time, Moscow and Washington have an understanding that they need to cooperate on issues related to the Ukrainian crisis.
Karasin also expressed the opinion that negotiations between the expert groups of Russia and the United States can be continued.
A joint statement by the parties on the results of the negotiations will be published on Tuesday, a source told RIA Novosti.
The conversation between the two leaders took place on March 18. They touched upon the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict, and also expressed mutual interest in normalizing relations in the light of their special responsibility for ensuring security and stability in the world. The Russian president responded positively to the idea of mutual refusal of the parties to the conflict from attacks on energy infrastructure facilities for 30 days and gave the relevant instructions to the military.
The heads of state also agreed to begin technical negotiations on the introduction of a "cease-fire on the Black Sea, a complete cease-fire and permanent peace." ria.ru.
