Trump, Putin Discuss Terrorism, Bilateral Ties
Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President-elect Donald Trump have discussed battling terrorism and developing ties during their first phone conversation, says the Kremlin.
According to a statement released by the Kremlin on Monday, Trump and Putin agreed on “uniting efforts in the fight with the common enemy number one – international terrorism and extremism.”
It added that ways to end the crisis in Syria were also discussed and that both leaders stressed upon the importance of creating a stable basis for bilateral relations via the development of trade and economic ties between the two countries.
Moscow ready to mend ties with Washington under Trump, says Ryabkov
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov says Moscow is ready to mend ties with Washington under the administration of US president-elect Donald Trump.
“The Russian side is ready, without wasting time, to begin the work to fix the current state of relations with the US, which have been taken to a crisis, a deadlock by the outgoing administration,” Russia’s TASS news agency quoted Ryabkov as saying on Monday.
The deputy foreign minister said Russian authorities had little knowledge about Trump’s policy plans, adding that Moscow had found disparities between Trump’s campaign pledges and the real politics he would implement when he takes office.
“We shall be judging by deeds, not by signals or promises,” Ryabkov noted.
In an interview with Russian NTV Channel published a day earlier, Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the Russian parliament, also expressed hope for an improvement in Moscow-Washington relations, saying, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump have numerous common points and shared views.”
The parliament speaker stressed that the US president-elect needed to make practical steps towards rapprochement with Russia, noting that “restoring trust and respect” should be a primary goal in relations between the two countries.
Volodin also took a swipe at outgoing US President Barack Obama, saying he either ignored Russia’s initiatives or deliberately “whipped up tensions, therefore contributing to the growing animosity” between Russia and the US.
Meanwhile, senior Russian Foreign Ministry official Ilya Rogachev said in an interview with Interfax that his country doubts Trump’s pre-election promises to cooperate with Russia in Syria, arguing that the president-elect would be only able to proceed with ideas that are approved by “establishment, political elite in the US.”
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