President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are scheduled to have their first phone call since Trump became president, according to CNN.
Russia has said U.S. relations “completely fell apart” during President Obama’s second term. Russia has expressed confidence in Donald Trump’s presidency.
Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev previously said in a Facebook message, “We are ready to do our share of the work in order to improve the relationship.” He referenced “the new administration,” however; he did not mention Trump by name.
Reuters reported that the Kremlin had said previously that no information was immediately available about when the leaders would have the meeting.
Trump has vowed to have better relations with Russia than his predecessor.
This month, he suggested he would lift sanctions imposed by the Obama administration if the Kremlin helps the US battle terrorists.
In his new year’s message, Putin congratulated Trump and expressed hope their two countries would be able to “take their interaction in the international arena to a whole new level.”
“Major global and regional challenges that our countries have confronted in recent years clearly confirm that Russia-US relations are an important factor in ensuring stability and security in the modern world,” Putin said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov this week called for the “re-establishment of normal relations” between Russia and the United States under the Trump administration.
“Following the difficult relations we had under Barack Obama, President Putin is ready to meet in the interests of global security and stability,” Lavrov said.
