Kanyshai Butun
05 June 2026•Update: 05 June 2026
US Envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are "sincerely interested" in improving relations between Moscow and Washington, but that interest has yet to achieve any progress, said Russia’s foreign minister on Friday.
Speaking to Izvestia, Sergey Lavrov said full normalization of relations should include the appointment of a US ambassador to Moscow.
Lavrov said Russia has proposed several measures aimed at normalizing bilateral ties, including the removal of sanctions imposed on lawmakers from both countries.
He said he first raised the proposal during talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in February 2025, suggesting that both sides lift restrictions on members of the Duma and Congress as an initial confidence-building measure.
“Practically all lawmakers are under sanctions – ours by the Americans and theirs by us,” Lavrov said, adding that Moscow later reiterated the proposal but got no response from Washington.
On the continuing war in Ukraine, Lavrov expressed confidence that achieving the goals of what it calls its special military operation will significantly strengthen Russia's position on the international stage.
"We will do everything possible to defend our interests at every specific stage, every day in our practical work, on a wide range of fronts, beginning with the financial, economic, transport, technological, and, of course, on the special military operation front, because a great deal will depend on this,” he said.
Lavrov also underlined that Moscow has noted no progress toward a settlement on Ukraine, nearly a year after the Anchorage, Alaska summit of the Russian and US presidents, and no desire to persuade Ukraine to accept Washington's proposals.
