WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The fourth Nuclear Security Summit is expected to take place in Washington between March 31 and April 1 without Russian President Vladimir Putin's participation.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has asserted as far back as November 2014 that Russia would not take part in preparations for and the summit itself, citing the United States' intent to devise guidelines for, among other organizations, the United Nations, Interpol, and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
“I will also just say as a factual matter that Russia will be represented through their Ambassador here,” Kirby stated. “While they didn’t send somebody from Moscow, their representative here in the United States, as far as I know, is planning to attend many of the events this week.”