John Kerry takes part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Moscow.

John Kerry, the US Secretary of State met President Vladimir Putin and the Russian foreign minister to have frank discussions on key issues including Iran, Syria and the Ukraine annexation on Tuesday.

Ukrainian forces and rebels supported by Russia had been fighting in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk which was succeeded by Russia’s annexation of Crimea, the southern Ukrainian peninsula claiming at least 6,000 people since April 2014.

“Kerry’s trip was part of our ongoing efforts to maintain direct lines of communication with senior Russian officials and to ensure US views are clearly conveyed,” said Marie Harf, spokeswoman of the State Department.

The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appreciated Mr. Kerry’s visit and also said that Russia is always open to showing political willingness for a broader dialogue. He added that Russia was keen to discuss conflict zone wars in Ukraine and Syria. He did however refuse to raise the issue of imposed western sanctions saying that it was not up to Russia and any attempt to pressurize them with sanctions would lead to a dead end.

Russia has been denying Western claims of nurturing rebels in eastern Ukraine. The visit of the US top envoy to Sochi is being termed “significant” by the US and “positive” by Russia, as Putin is ready to discuss a wide range of issues with officials.

Kerry and his Russian counterpart Mr. Sergei Lavrov laid wreaths at a WWII memorial earlier on Tuesday. Lavrov presented baskets of tomatoes and potatoes to Kerry seemingly reminding him of Russia’s response to sanctions by banning European imports of fruit and vegetables last year and  a t-shirt labelled “Victory” and “1945-2015” to mark the 70th anniversary of the victory over Nazi. Kerry who gave two large Idaho potatoes in January 2014 this time presented a leather portfolio to Lavrov during their meeting at the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel had said that Russia’s annexation of Crimean peninsula caused “a serious setback in our relations”, during a joint press conference with Putin in Moscow, two days earlier. She also informed that the EU plans to extend sanctions against Russia till discernible progress on the Minsk peace deal.