WASHINGTON, February 10. /TASS/. The Russian and US leaderships have instructed their diplomats to make the relations between the two countries great again, Russian Ambassador to Washington Alexander Darchiev said.
"I responsibly testify that both Russian and American diplomats [have served their countries] in a very professional way, putting diplomacy first," Darchiev said at a ceremonial reception at the Russian embassy in the US capital marking Diplomat’s Day in Russia.
"This has allowed us to overcome crisis and preserve common sense as a prerequisite to making Russian-American relations great again. Our presidents have instructed us to do exactly that," he added.
The ambassador noted that the history of Russian-American relations is a vivid example of diplomatic art, as despite periods of ups and downs, they have never been severed.
Darchiev recalled how early in his diplomatic career his superior gave him valuable advice. "Your task and duty, young man, is to keep things going at any cost, because ruining relations is other people's job. You must extract something positive, even from utmostly negative circumstances," then Russia’s ambassador to the United States said.
The reception at the Russian embassy was attended by ambassadors, senior diplomats, employees of diplomatic missions and military attaches from CIS countries, as well Asian, African and Latin American states. The guests also included Director of the Office of Russian Affairs at the US State Department Peter Andreoli, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Sonata Coulter, US Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, members of the US academic community and non-governmental organizations, as well as journalists.