Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy Kirill Dmitriev will attend a White House event hosted by US first lady Melania Trump on Thursday, and also meet with US administration officials, two people familiar with his plans said, Reuters reports.
The visit will mark the first in-person contact between Russian and US officials since midterm elections in which Democrats secured control of both the US Senate and the House of Representatives in a blow to President Donald Trump.
The Democratic majority in Congress from January is widely expected to push for more aid for Ukraine and to question several of the Republican Trump administration's decisions, such as a diesel deal with Russia and the easing of some sanctions.
The Kremlin has said that it hopes Trump will continue his peacemaking efforts despite the Republican Party’s defeat.
The Kremlin added that work was under way to prepare a meeting between Putin, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on November 18 to 19 in Shenzhen,China.
Dmitriev’s visit precedes a trilateral meeting of US, Russian and Ukrainian officials in Abu Dhabi on November 10, at which the US negotiators will seek progress towards ending the war, which is nearing the five-year mark.
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