Russia says US has cancelled next round of talks on easing tensions

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia said on Monday that the United States had cancelled the next round of talks between the two countries, an apparent setback in a process launched by presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump to improve bilateral ties.

In a statement, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova did not say if Washington had given any reason for the break in the talks, which began after Trump returned to the White House in January.

Russia had described relations as "below zero" under the previous administration of President Joe Biden, which provided advanced U.S. weapons to Ukraine and imposed multiple rounds of sanctions on Moscow over the war.

"As of today, the next meeting within the framework of bilateral consultations on eliminating 'irritants' in order to normalize the activities of diplomatic missions of both countries has been cancelled at the initiative of the American negotiators," Zakharova said.

"We hope that the pause they have taken will not last too long."

Russia had said only last week that the U.S.-Russia talks - which have been proceeding on a separate track from discussions about ending the war in Ukraine - would soon move to Moscow from Istanbul.

However, the Kremlin - while denying that dialogue had stalled - also said last week that there were "a lot of blockages in bilateral relations" and talks on improving them were not expected to yield quick results.

Both sides say there is huge potential for business and investment deals if relations improve. But Trump, despite holding five phone calls with President Vladimir Putin - most recently on Saturday - has voiced frustration about Russia's war actions in Ukraine and the lack of any visible progress towards a peace deal.

(Reporting by Marina Bobrova; Writing by Mark Trevelyan and Gleb Stolyarov)