Russian diplomat says US must make first step to improve ties

(Reuters) - The United States must make the first move in improving ties with Russia after years of failing to listen to the Kremlin and misguided policies intended to inflict a "strategic defeat" on Moscow, a senior Russian diplomat said on Wednesday.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also said it was wrong to base a foreign policy on the need to "come to an agreement with the White House at any price."

Relations between Russia and the United States have plunged to lows not seen in decades over Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. 

But since the election and inauguration of Donald Trump, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin has made a point of describing the U.S. president as smart and pragmatic and said he would like to meet him soon.

In a commentary on the Foreign Ministry website, Ryabkov said the Kremlin had long sought to be a partner with the West, "but no one was listening or, in theory, wanted to listen.

"And that is because the underlying aim was to weaken the geopolitical rival to the maximum," he said.

Russia, he said, had regained "its lawful place in world geopolitics by frustrating the plans of Joe Biden's administration ... to inflict a 'strategic defeat' on Moscow in a hybrid war 'to the last Ukrainian.'"

"Against the background of this failed policy and with the change of administration, it is the United States that must take the first step in normalising relations on the basis of mutual respect and equal rights," Ryabkov wrote.

Ryabkov said Russia was "open to dialogue and ready to reach agreement through hard bargaining while taking account of realities on the ground ... So it is up to D. Trump and his team to make a decision."

Putin has said any talks on ending the war in Ukraine must take account of the realities of Russia holding large chunks of Ukrainian territory. He has also questioned the legitimacy of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as a negotiating partner, saying that Zelenskiy has remained in office beyond his mandate.

Trump has pledged to end the war in Ukraine as soon as possible and said he is ready to meet Putin.

Russian officials have denied any direct contacts with the U.S. about preparations for a phone call between the two leaders as a first step to an eventual meeting later this year.

Two Russian sources with knowledge of the discussions told Reuters this week that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are seen by Russia as possible venues for a summit.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Matthew Lewis)