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A meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump has been agreed, a Kremlin official said on Thursday 7 August, the eve of a White House deadline for Moscow to show progress toward ending the 3-year-old war in Ukraine. Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov, quoted by AP, said a summit could possibly take place next week at a venue that has been decided “in principle.” Next week is the target date for a summit, Ushakov said, while noting that such events take time to organise and no date is confirmed. The possible venue will be announced “a little later,” he said.

As diplomatic efforts to resolve the long-running conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan once again make headlines, the real challenge lies not in high-level meetings or momentary gestures, but in the unfortunate disconnect between the elites and the populations they represent. For almost thirty years, press release after press release declared that talks inched towards peace. Hopes were premature. The sides will next month mark the anniversary of the last war fought five years ago.