The possibility of holding contacts of the five states with nuclear weapons at the expert level is being discussed, but there is no agreement yet, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told Sputnik.
"We are currently discussing the possibility of holding contacts in the 'nuclear five' format, but there are no agreements on this either," Ryabkov said, adding that the meeting is expected to be at the "expert, working" level.
Russia hopes that the war against Iran will not undermine the principles of nuclear arms nonproliferation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday.
"I really hope that the current war against Iran will not undermine the foundations of the principles of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons," Lavrov said during an embassy roundtable discussion.
The resumption and maintenance of military contacts between Russia and the United States will be useful and will help ensure greater predictability in relations between the two countries, Ryabkov told Sputnik.
"In the context of a hyper-unstable and very dangerous geopolitical situation, especially given the sharp escalation in the Middle East, we consider it important to find diplomatic ways and methods to solve the problems that are only multiplying. This is an imperative. Accordingly, maintaining working contacts, especially in the military sphere, will contribute not only to finding effective responses to the challenges of our time, but also to a useful exchange of views between interested parties," Ryabkov said.
Moscow hopes that "this will ultimately help establish greater predictability in our relations with the United States," the deputy foreign minister added.