proximity talks

plural noun

1. a diplomatic process whereby an impartial representative acts as go-between for two opposing parties who are willing to attend the same conference but unwilling to meet face to face

Example Sentences

Mr Perriello scaled down his expectations and settled on proximity talks and phone calls - including from US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken - hoping to open roads for humanitarian access.

From BBC

Iran refuses to hold direct talks with its arch-foe, the United States, resulting in the "proximity" talks arrangement involving Mora.

From Reuters

“There’s no sign there would be direct talks on the horizon between the two sides, nor is that necessary,” Feltman added, saying there are “a whole lot of ways to have political processes” including proximity talks.

From Seattle Times

The meeting in the Austrian capital, Vienna, is the first contact the United States and Iran have had in years, although it is through “proximity talks,” where the representatives of each country don’t actually sit in the same room.

From Los Angeles Times

Following a 10-year occupation and thousands of soldiers who died in Afghanistan, the Soviets negotiated their exit from Afghanistan in February, 1989, after so-called proximity talks between Afghanistan’s communist government and the U.S.-backed mujahedeen, many of whom are now in the Taliban while others are warlords linked to the Kabul government.

From Seattle Times