MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin’s investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who is visiting Washington this week, said on Thursday that unidentified forces were trying to sow tension between Russia and the United States.
“Today, numerous forces interested in maintaining tension stand in the way of restoring constructive cooperation… These forces are deliberately distorting Russia’s position, trying to disrupt any steps towards dialogue, sparing neither money nor resources for this,” Dmitriev said on Telegram.
“Opponents of the rapprochement are afraid that Russia and the United States will find common ground, begin to understand each other better and build cooperation both in international affairs and in the economy,” he said.
Moves by presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump to restore Russia-U.S. ties have stirred fears in Ukraine and its European allies that the two leaders could cut a deal to end the war that sidelines them and puts their security at risk.
Dmitriev said Putin had sent him to Washington this week to meet members of the Trump administration.
“Yes, restoring dialogue is a difficult and gradual process. But each meeting, each frank conversation allows us to move forward,” Dmitriev posted on Telegram.
“A real understanding of the Russian position opens up new opportunities for constructive cooperation, including in the investment and economic sphere,” he said.
Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker, has repeatedly said he wants the three-year war in Ukraine to end and has warned of the risks of it escalating into World War Three between the United States and Russia.
Steve Witkoff, a Trump envoy who has taken the lead on the administration’s contacts with the Kremlin, invited Dmitriev to the United States last week, U.S. officials said.
The White House directed the State Department to issue a short-term license for Dmitriev to travel to the country, a necessary step as Dmitriev faces U.S. sanctions, the officials said.
(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Gleb Stolyarov; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Mark Trevelyan)
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