Tag #Back-Channel Diplomacy

What are the immediate implications of the secret meeting in Azerbaijan between German and Russian officials, considering the ongoing war in Ukraine?

In April 2025, a secret meeting in Azerbaijan between high-ranking German politicians and Russian officials, including former Russian Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov and head of Putin's Human Rights Council Valery Fadeyev, was revealed. The meeting, one of three in the past year, involved discussions aimed at resuming the Petersburg Dialogue, a German-Russian forum dissolved after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This raises concerns about potential back-channel negotiations undermining sanctions against Russia.