*Russia is pressing demands that the *US give it access to two diplomatic compounds seized in the US last year.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was unacceptable to set preconditions for returning the properties. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the move as “daylight robbery”.
In December the US expelled 35 Russian diplomats and shut the compounds over suspicions of meddling in US elections.
Russian and US officials are due to discuss the issue later on Monday.
US Undersecretary of State Thomas Shannon is hosting Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov in Washington.
The meeting was meant to have been held in June in St Petersburg, but was cancelled after the US government added 38 individuals and organisations to its list of sanctions over Russian activity in Ukraine.
