US-Russia talks in Istanbul kicks off

Russia’s delegation has arrived at the Istanbul residence of the US consul general, where the two countries will hold a meeting on embassy issues, TASS reported. The U.S. State Department said Thursday's talks will not include any discussions on Ukraine.

Several dozen journalists have gathered in front of the residence. The talks will be held behind closed doors; the parties did not provide the names of their delegation members.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said earlier that "diplomats and high-level experts will meet to discuss systemic problems."

Moscow expects the meeting to make it clear how capable the parties are of moving forward quickly and effectively in terms of resuming the normal operation of the two countries’ embassies.

Prior to the meeting, Moscow and Washington held two rounds of preliminary technical consultations.

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