MOSCOW, January 10. /TASS/. Moscow is ready for dialogue with Washington on normalizing bilateral relations even if sanctions are not lifted, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday.

Peskov answered a question on whether lifting anti-Russian restrictions is a necessary precondition for improving relations between Russia and the United States. The presidential spokesman said that bilateral relations now are "at their lowest point" and there were "completely different ways of normalizing them."

"Certainly, sanctions are an element that very negatively affect bilateral relations, but still even under the backdrop of sanctions, Moscow would, undoubtedly, welcome any prospect for dialogue and it is ready for that," he stressed.

When asked to assess the outcome of Barack Obama’s policies, Peskov said this is a domestic issue for the United States and "we would not like to interfere here."

"We can only express our deepest regret that the second term of Mr. Obama’s presidency unfortunately saw a period of a rather unprecedented and prolonged deterioration in our bilateral relations," he noted.

Peskov stated that this meets neither the interests of Moscow, nor Washington and "we regret that this happened so." "At the same time, we still hope that in one way or another we will have the opportunity to embark on a more positive trajectory for building our relations with the US."