Jake Sullivan

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden have begun to hold talks in an expanded format.

A meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden in Geneva on Wednesday is unlikely to yield concrete deals but the talks will still be useful, a Kremlin aide said.

The leaders will meet for the first time since Biden became president as the bilateral relationship stands at the lowest point in years.

US President Joe Biden set out on his first overseas trip on Wednesday, his European trip will culminate in talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva on June 16. Biden's Air Force One left Joint Base Andrews located just outside of Washington and headed to the UK. The US leader is expected to land at RAF Mildenhall situated around 100 kilometers away from London.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan will meet to discuss Syria, Afghanistan and other regional issues next week and will also look at the "significant differences" between Washington and Ankara, the U.S. national security advisor said on June 7. 

Belarusian dissident journalist Roman Protasevich was arrested on Sunday after Belarusian authorities diverted Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius of a possible bomb threat and forced it to land at an airport near Minsk.

Fears are growing that the Belarusian journalist who is well-known critic of President Lukashenko, has been subject to torture while in custody.

In another stern warning, US administration said Monday the welfare of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny is the responsibility of the Russian government and that Russia would be held accountable if he dies.

Russia announced the start of mass military drills, ratcheting up tensions with neighboring Ukraine amid Western concerns about the risk of renewed fighting.

More than 4,000 training exercises will be held in military districts across Russia in April, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Tuesday, in comments posted on the ministry's website.

 Top U.S. and Chinese officials offered sharply different views of each other and the world on Thursday as the two sides met face-to-face for the first time since President Joe Biden took office.

Turkey's presidential spokesman urged the U.S. on Feb. 11 to end its support for the PYD/YPG terrorist group. 

"The US should end its support to the PYD/YPG. It should say 'stop' to FETÖ's activities there," said İbrahim Kalın during an interview with TRT Haber, Turkey's state-run news channel.

President Joe Biden announced on Feb. 4 the United States was ending support for a grinding five-year Saudi-led military offensive in Yemen that has deepened suffering in the Arabian peninsula's poorest country, calling the move part of restoring a U.S. emphasis on diplomacy, democracy and human rights.