In Moscow’s Novodevichy Park there’s an unusual attraction which has become a regular stop on the city’s sightseeing tours.
It’s unusual because of what it represents – friendship between Russia and the United States.
It is a collection of nine squat statues – a mother mallard and her eight ducklings, waddling along behind her.
Replicas of a sculpture in Boston, Massachusetts, they were presented to Moscow in 1991 by then US First Lady Barbara Bush, after her counterpart Raisa Gorbachev was said to have admired the original.
The plaque next to the ducks describes them as a “gift to the children of the Soviet Union”.
So in light of the latest attempt at a rapprochement, is duck diplomacy still afloat? Do Russians believe Donald Trump can stop the war in Ukraine?
One woman we meet, Olga, is dismissive. “It is not American negotiations that will bring about the end of the Special Military Operation, but only our Russian interests,” she says, taking a break from walking laps of the park’s frozen pond.
Any thaw in relations, she believes, will be on Vladimir Putin’s terms: “If we achieve what our leaders have outlined – by the way I support it – then the Special Military Operation will probably end.”
Another bus pulls up before a gaggle of tourists follow their guide to the statues, their formation mirroring that of the figures they’ve come to see.
Some stroke the bronze beaks, others take selfies. It’s unclear if their interest is in the sculpture’s symbolism or its novelty.
Valeria is on the edge of the group with her young son, having travelled to Moscow from Perm. In December, she buried her husband, Aleksey, who died fighting in Ukraine. All she wants is for the war to be over.
“I think it will all end soon,” she says, viewing the call between Putin and Trump as grounds for optimism.
“I really hope for it, because my husband died on his own. He signed a contract, and it turned out that he died.
“So we still hope that [the war] will end someday.”
Across town, another unusual sight. Again, it involves statues. There’s one of the Blues Brothers; another of Elvis Presley.
We’ve come to Beverly Hills Diner, a rare pocket of Americana in the Russian capital, to swap ducks for double cheeseburgers.
Among the customers are Viktoria and Natalya. The two friends share a table but not the same views on the negotiations.
“Well, it doesn’t depend on only two presidents,” Viktoria says, believing President Zelenskyy should be invited to the table too.
“There should be at least three sides. The other side should also agree to this.”
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According to Natalya, though, any contact is better than none, even if Kyiv is frozen out.
“I really like that at least bridges are being built for these negotiations,” she says, adding how happy she’d be if the American president accepted Vladimir Putin’s invitation to Moscow.
“We have a beautiful country, a beautiful city,” she says, beaming.
“We have something to show, something to be proud of. So, of course, I would really like him to see it.”
If Donald Trump was to visit Moscow, I wonder which site he would prefer to see – the ducks or the diner?
