Top Russian negotiator says US businesses would be welcome in Russia if sanctions were lifted

Top Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev said Thursday he did not raise sanctions relief in his meetings with the Trump administration in Washington, DC, but he said ​the punitive measures could be lifted to allow more US business with Russia.

Top Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev said Thursday he did not raise sanctions relief in his meetings with the Trump administration in Washington, DC, but he said ​the punitive measures could be lifted to allow more US business with Russia. “At this point, we are not asking for any sanction relief. We are just discussing that if America wants to have more business with Russia … then of course US can do so,” Dmitriev told CNN’s Phil Mattingly on “The Lead.” The United States, along with its European allies, have imposed scores of sanctions on Moscow for its war against Ukraine. Dmitriev himself is under US sanction. European leaders have been clear that they believe now is not the time to lessen the pressure on Russia by lifting sanctions. Dmitriev, a close adviser of Russian President Vladimir Putin, met on Wednesday with top US envoy Steve Witkoff. Witkoff has now met with Putin twice in Moscow. It is unclear who else Dmitriev met with while in the US capital. A source familiar said more meetings between the US and Russia are expected, but it’s not clear where or when they will take place. In a separate interview with Russian state media TASS, Dmitriev said that the Trump administration “understands Russia’s concerns.”