Tillerson will focus on the crises in Ukraine and Syria, as well as North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has a more ambitious goal for the meeting, according to his team. "At the initiative of the former Washington authorities, Russia-U.S. relations plunged into deep crisis in recent years," the Foreign Ministry's preview says. Lavrov plans to discuss Ukraine, with an emphasis on blaming the Ukrainian government for the recent spate of ceasefire violations, North Korea, and counterterrorism issues in Syria. "[R]esolving the Syrian, Palestinian-Israeli, Yemeni, Libyan, Afghan and other conflicts" is a high priority for Lavrov, according to the Russian preview.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 05, 2017 20:15 UTC