Stalled conversation: US congressmen postponed visit to Moscow
The visit of American congressmen to Russia, previously scheduled for June, has been postponed indefinitely, Izvestia found out. They have received an official invitation to visit Moscow, but have not yet responded to it. Experts are confident that contacts at the parliamentary level have been suspended due to the imminent elections to the US Congress - any contacts with the Russian Federation have become dangerous, as they can be used by Republican opponents in election campaigning. The postponed visit became a litmus test of the current relations between Russia and the United States — they are at a standstill, and the "spirit of Anchorage" has faded. After the suspension of the war in Iran, Trump promised to get involved in resolving the Ukrainian crisis, but the Ukrainian Armed Forces' attacks on Russian civilian targets only exacerbate it. Is it worth waiting for a new "thaw" between Moscow and Washington — in the Izvestia article.
Why don't congressmen go to Russia
The dialogue between Russia and the United States through the parliaments has stalled. The return visit of the American congressmen to Russia, previously scheduled for June, has been postponed indefinitely. The Congress has not yet responded to the invitation from the State Duma, Vyacheslav Nikonov, first deputy chairman of the International Affairs Committee, told Izvestia.
— Dates have not been determined. The invitation has been sent to them. No topics are being discussed at the moment. When they arrive and what will be on the agenda for that, we will discuss it," the parliamentarian said.
In March, a State Duma delegation paid an official visit to the United States for the first time in 12 years. Vyacheslav Nikonov, who headed it, then said that the return visit would most likely take place in June, before the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the declaration of independence of the United States. But these plans did not come true. "There are two weeks left, obviously [they won't come]," Nikonov said.
So far, the issue of lifting sanctions against congressmen has not even been discussed — this is necessary for their entry into the Russian Federation. The State Duma will deal with this only when the American parliamentarians respond to the invitation.
Also, the Congress has not yet created a friendship group for relations with the Russian parliament, although the parties also agreed on this during the March meeting, Alexey Chepa, first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, told Izvestia. According to him, the Americans are not ready for a return visit because they are focused on the domestic political agenda, in particular, the upcoming congressional elections in November.
The activity in the contacts of parliamentarians has decreased due to the negative reaction to the visit of Russian deputies from the Democrats and a considerable part of the Washington establishment, believes American scholar Malek Dudakov.
— They started shouting that it was impossible to negotiate with the Russians. In addition, due to the active phase of the primaries in the United States, if you, as a congressman, try to establish contacts with Russia now, this will be used against you as part of the election campaign. Therefore, this topic is slippery and dangerous," he told Izvestia.
Immediately after the visit of the Russian deputies, its main organizer, Anna Paulina Luna, a Republican from Florida, and other participants in the meeting faced a wave of criticism. The Democratic Party of the USA Congressional Elections Committee (DCCC) expectedly accused Luna of promoting Russia's interests.
— Anna Paulina Luna must decide whether she wants to represent Florida or the Kremlin. If the role of a Russian henchman is her true calling, the voters of Florida will gladly dismiss her ahead of schedule," said Madison Andrus, a DCCC representative.
U.S. Representative Anna Paulina Luna
Former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger called his colleagues "traitors." Senators Roger Wicker and Gene Shaheen wrote an appeal to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, saying that Russian deputies allegedly came to collect intelligence, and they were allowed into all US government agencies.
There are only a few months left before the November congressional elections, and it seems that the Americans should not wait for a return visit. However, the State Duma is optimistic.
— Our session is also ending, and many deputies are constantly traveling, because elections are not a very convenient time. Nevertheless, I think that the meeting will take place," Alexey Chepa believes.
The level of parliamentary contacts should not be underestimated. Due to their domestic political lobbying potential, congressmen can significantly accelerate and deepen the conclusion of specific interstate agreements, HSE analyst Egor Toropov told Izvestia. According to him, in the future, such a communication channel can play an important role in resuming full-fledged economic and political cooperation.
Why relations between Moscow and Washington are stalling
The situation around the failed return visit highlights the not very rosy picture in the bilateral relations between Russia and the United States. Both inter-parliamentary and interstate dialogue are obviously stalling. There has been no real progress on key issues for months.
It's about eliminating so-called irritants. In diplomatic practice, this term combines a large list of problems that paralyze normal contacts between the two states. These are personal sanctions, strict visa restrictions, lack of direct flights, as well as the illegal arrest of Russian diplomatic property in the United States. The other day, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov admitted in an interview with Izvestia that the dialogue with Washington on these issues was at a standstill.
— I won't say that we've hit a wall now — that would be an exaggeration. But at least there are setbacks, and each new step forward comes at the cost of considerable effort. We have such progress in small things," he explained.
The situation today is significantly different from what it was a year ago. Then, after the meeting of representatives of the Russian Federation and the United States in Saudi Arabia, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the countries had practically agreed "once and for all" to resolve issues with the work of the diplomatic missions of the two countries. Even more progress was achieved following a personal meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Alaska, after which the very "spirit of Anchorage" appeared.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump during a meeting at Anchorage International Airport
Progress in bilateral relations between the Russian Federation and the United States directly depends on the Ukrainian crisis, political analyst Alexei Chernyaev explained to Izvestia. After the meeting in Anchorage, a series of negotiations between Moscow and Kiev began with the participation of Americans — special envoy of the US President Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. As progress in the negotiations failed, the "Anchorage spirit" waned. Today, negotiations between the Russian Federation and Ukraine have been completely put on pause. And Washington has been focusing on resolving the Iranian issue lately.
At some point, it seemed that the ice had broken again. On June 14, during a conversation with Vladimir Putin, Trump again called for an end to the conflict, promising to influence Kiev and the EU. The Kremlin immediately allowed an early visit to Russia by Witkoff and Kushner to resume negotiations, but the dates were not specified.
At the same time, the Ukrainian Armed Forces intensified drone attacks on Russian refineries, and on the night of June 18, the largest drone raid on Moscow in two years took place, apparently with the permission of Western supervisors. Ambiguous signals are coming from the State Department. Marco Rubio stressed that Washington cannot be considered an impartial mediator on Ukraine, as it supports Kiev.
The Russian Foreign Ministry was surprised by such rhetoric, although it stressed that contacts were continuing anyway.
— We see that Rubio is taking a much more conflictual position towards our country and is trying to influence Trump accordingly. This is just one of the figures, and there are actually quite a few in the White House," emphasizes Alexey Chernyaev.
The current stagnation in relations between the two countries, including the parliamentary dialogue, can only worsen after the congressional elections if the Democrats prevail over the Republicans. At least the "elephants" are definitely predicted to lose the House of Representatives. A warming of relations should be expected only after the final settlement of the Ukrainian issue, which is still very far from being resolved.
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