“There is a question now whether this might not be a better moment” for a visit with Mr. Putin, a senior administration official said, briefing reporters on the visit. “We obviously wanted to make sure that if he was going to make the trip he’d get a chance to talk to the main decision maker.” (Earlier: Kerry to Meet With Putin in Russia on Tuesday)
Reflecting low expectations for substantive progress, U.S. officials sounded a cautious tone ahead of the meeting in Russia. Moscow, on the other hand, had sharp words for Washington ahead of the visit and chided the U.S. for causing “a difficult period” in relations between the countries.
Mr. Kerry will spend several hours in Sochi on Tuesday before heading to Antalya, Turkey, for a Wednesday meeting with foreign ministers of North Atlantic Treaty Organization nations. Mr. Kerry will also meet with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
In addition to Syria and Ukraine, Mr. Kerry in his meeting with Mr. Putin intends to discuss nuclear talks with Iran, strife in Yemen and the fragmentation of Libya, officials said. The United Nations Security Council might consider steps to address Libya in coming days, officials said, and Mr. Kerry wants Russia’s cooperation in any measures offered there.
“We have a lot of business that we could do together if there’s interest,” the senior official said. “We are doing some very significant business together with regard to Iran.”
Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman is traveling with Mr. Kerry to Russia and will return Wednesday to the nuclear negotiations in Vienna, which face a June 30 deadline.
Mr. Kerry also will raise the U.S. opposition to Russia’s sale to Iran of a powerful air defense system, the senior official said.
On Ukraine, Mr. Kerry will urge Mr. Putin to abide by a cease-fire agreement reached in February and will reiterate the U.S. pledge to roll back sanctions if Russia is found to be in full compliance, the senior official said. Mr. Kerry will offer U.S. assistance to help with the implementation process. He also will raise the issue of continuing cease-fire violations by Russia and Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, officials said.
Mr. Kerry intends to assess if there is more the U.S. and Russia can do to bring about a political end to Syria’s civil war. The most recent U.S.-Russian effort to cooperate on the Syrian peace process failed when international peace talks announced on Mr. Kerry’s 2013 visit to Russia and initiated in January 2014 fell apart. Two rounds of Moscow-led talks this year also failed.
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