Russia sees no progress in ties with U.S., says spokesperson

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said no substantive progress had been made toward normalising relations with the United States.

Responding to a question about Russia-U.S. relations at a press briefing on Friday, Zakharova said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had discussed bilateral issues.

She also added that the two countries discussed  areas of cooperation within multilateral frameworks, including the United Nations, the Group of Twenty (G20) and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

However, no tangible progress has been achieved, such as the return of confiscated Russian diplomatic properties and the resumption of direct flights between the two countries, she said.

Zakharova added that dialogue with the United States at various levels had continued in a generally businesslike manner.

Xinhua/NAN