Although the dialogue between the United States and Russia is officially broken off, the Wall Street Journal reveals on Monday that Washington and Moscow continue to exchange behind the scenes.
According to the American newspaper, Jake Sullivan, US national security adviser and adviser to Joe Biden, has had several conversations in recent months with two top advisers to Russian President Vladimir Putin: Yuri Ushakov and Nikolai Patrushev.
The objective of these “confidential” telephone exchanges was to fight against a risk of escalation of the conflict and to keep communication channels open between Washington and Moscow, several US officials explain to the Wall Street Journal.
It is not the first discussion.
This is not the first time advisers to Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin have discussed the war in Ukraine. In October, two discussions were held involving Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on the risks of a “dirty bomb” in Ukraine.
“We remain determined to continue our support for Ukraine’s efforts to defend its territory for as long as it takes,” the US representative explained after the discussion in a joint statement with London and Paris.
This weekend, the Washington Post revealed that the Joe Biden administration was quietly trying to encourage the Ukrainian president to negotiate with his Russian counterpart, to ensure support from Western powers if the conflict drags on.
And on Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated that Moscow was “open” to the possibility of negotiations with Kyiv, once again denouncing Volodymyr Zelensky’s refusal to dialogue.
Source: BFM TV
