MOSCOW -- No major breakthrough is expected at the upcoming visit by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to Russia, local experts said on Monday.

"Both sides have come to realize that there are a number of issues over which no agreements could be reached for practical reasons," Sergei Markov, director of the Institute of Political Studies, told Xinhua.

"They will thus prefer not to focus on those issues but to stress those that can unite them," Markov added.

Kerry, who took office in February, said the two-day visit to Moscow starting Tuesday was a "belated" trip, and urged the two sides to establish a full-fledged "healthy" dialogue.

The main driving force for Russia-U.S. relations, Markov noted, lies in the personal desire of the two presidents who are "both looking for a pretext to push forward bilateral relations."

Analysts said Kerry will not be able to avoid thorny topics gapping the two nations such as the Syrian crisis, Iranian nuclear issue, and anti-missile defense system.

"Where there is a will, there is a way. The question is, whether or not Moscow and Washington possess such a will," said Alexander Khramchikhin of the Institute for Political and Military Analysis.

"For both sides, their positions, or interests, over major global issues prevail. So Kerry's trip to Moscow will unlikely bring about any breakthrough worth to celebrate," Khramchikhin said.

The scholar noted that neither Moscow nor Washington revealed the context of a private letter that U.S. President Barack Obama passed to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin last month via National Security Advisor Thomas Donilon.

"Still, the essence of the letter is predictable," Khramchikhin said, citing Afghanistan as an issue of "guaranteed" accord while Syria and anti-missile defense as the most likely failures.

"Russia does not welcome Obama's proposals on strategic nuclear disarmament, since Moscow ties the issue with anti-missile defense," the expert added.

For that reason, Kerry's visit would apply some face-lift on bilateral relations, but Russia-U.S. ties would essentially remain coolish, as each side is ready for equal partnership only if their own side is more equal than the other, the expert said.