Russia "U.S. geopolitical game risks nuclear disaster"

The U.S. geopolitical game of pressuring Russia, China and North Korea with nuclear weapons could lead to catastrophic consequences, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov warned.

Ryabkov said the U.S. is trying to take more strategic risks to maintain global dominance, stressing that increasing reckless actions by the U.S. and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization could create a risk of using nuclear weapons.

However, Ryabkov also said he was willing to consider any proposal to bring bilateral relations back to normal for the United States.

He also said he had no information on whether Ukraine's special envoy, Keith Kellogg, nominated by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, would visit Russia, adding that he did not know whether Kellogg was willing to create a communication channel with Russia.

Earlier, Reuters quoted sources as saying Kellogg was due to visit Ukraine, Italy and France next month but had no plans to visit Russia.

At the same time, Ryabkov said the U.S. side's consent to the appointment of the new ambassador-designate to the U.S., or Agreman, has yet to emerge.

Russia has not made an official announcement, but local media reported last month that Aleksandr Darchiev, the North American director of the Foreign Ministry, was named the new U.S. ambassador.