Foreign affairs

US And Russia Quietly End Diplomatic Tailspin

After months of angry statements, diplomatic expulsions, and shuttered consulates, US and Russian officials have quietly put an end to the tit-for-tat retaliations between the two sides, and US officials are now considering reviving parts of a Russian proposal from March to strengthen military-to-military contacts.

The improvement in relations follows talks between Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week.

For weeks, US officials had braced for Moscow to take retaliatory measures against US facilities in Russia in response to Washington’s closure of a Russian consulate in San Francisco in late August. But following last week’s meetings, Moscow is signaling an end to the feud, and US officials are expressing cautious optimism about the two diplomats’ conversations.