Last week's Riyadh talks between the United States and Russia have led to another round of face-to-face bilateral negotiations, set for Thursday in Istanbul.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov confirmed the meeting while alongside the emir of Qatar in Doha. The oil and gas rick Gulf country remains a close ally of Turkey.

The Istanbul meeting is expected to focus on restoring diplomatic staff and full relations at each respective embassy. Both sides went through several rounds of expelling the other's diplomats under the Biden administration, as relations hit a low-point during the Ukraine war, also amid US/EU-led sanctions on Moscow.