No deal on dachas after Trump-Putin talks
WASHINGTON — Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin discussed on Friday a pair of Russian diplomatic compounds that the U.S. seized last year, according to a top Russian official, but left their first meeting without a deal that Moscow has put high on its wish list from the new American administration.
After their more than two-hour meeting, Putin’s top diplomat told reporters the fate of the compounds was raised. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia is still seeking “justice.”
American officials didn’t say if the subject came up. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson didn’t answer a question about whether Russia might get the so-called dachas in Maryland and New York back.
A month after Trump’s election victory, President Barack Obama seized the Cold War-era recreational estates and expelled 35 Russian officials. The actions were a response to claims by U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia meddled in the presidential election to help Trump. Obama said the sites were being used for espionage.