Moscow said Alexander Darchiyev, a career diplomat who is currently the head of the foreign ministry’s North America department, will soon leave for the role in Washington, according to The Guardian.
Moscow has not had an envoy in the US since the last ambassador left his post in October last year.
Russia’s foreign ministry said the US had formally approved Moscow’s appointment of Darchiyev after Thursday’s talks in Istanbul, where diplomats met to discuss improving bilateral relations.
Darchiyev, 64, previously served as Russia’s ambassador to Canada from October 2014 to January 2021. He has worked for the foreign ministry since 1992 and held a senior post at the embassy in Washington earlier in his career.
In a statement published on Russia’s foreign ministry website, Moscow said it had proposed restoring direct flights between the two countries during the talks in Istanbul.
Following Moscow’s attack on Ukraine in February 2022, Ukraine’s allies – including the US, the UK and the EU – banned Russian planes from their airspace.
On Friday, Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, said officials in Istanbul “agreed on joint steps to ensure the uninterrupted financing of diplomatic missions in both countries and to create appropriate conditions for diplomats to carry out their duties effectively”.
Over the past decade, Russia and the US have repeatedly expelled each other’s diplomats, significantly reducing their embassy staffing levels.
MNA
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