Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and special presidential envoy, has arrived in the United States for official negotiations, CNN reports.
Dmitriev arrived in the U.S. to hold official talks just days after American President Donald Trump announced new sanctions against Russia. According to sources, the RDIF chief is expected to meet with representatives of the U.S. presidential administration to continue discussions on Russia-U.S. relations.
The visit was also confirmed by an unnamed source cited by RIA Novosti.
Dmitriev To Meet With Witkoff
Kirill Dmitriev is set to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, during his visit to the United States, Barak Ravid, an Axios journalist said citing a well-informed source.
“White House envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to meet on Saturday with Putin's envoy @kadmitriev who arrived in the U.S., per source with knowledge,” the journalist wrote.
In April, a CNN source reported that the U.S. government temporarily lifted sanctions on Dmitriev to allow the State Department to issue him a visa to enter the country. Dmitriev last visited the United States in early April.
On October 22, the U.S. Treasury announced sanctions targeting Rosneft and LUKOIL. The measures also affected 34 subsidiaries of LUKOIL and Rosneft located in Russia. The Treasury gave companies one month to wind down operations with Rosneft, LUKOIL, and their subsidiaries, citing Russia’s “lack of serious interest in the peace process” as the reason for the sanctions.
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin described the new American sanctions as an attempt to pressure Moscow, noting that such measures do not contribute to strengthening bilateral relations. Putin emphasized that Russia and the U.S. have numerous areas for cooperation if both sides move from pressure to serious long-term dialogue.
