Trump-Putin Telephone Call Aims To Put An End to Three Years Of Tensions

This Saturday the Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump will speak by telephone as Trump aims for a normalisation of relations after three years of tensions. Trump will also have a telephone discussion the same day with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Trump has said in the past that, he is prepared to review sanctions Washington imposed on Russia over its 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula. Trump and Putin have never met but both have spoken about halting the enmity that has dragged US-Russia relations to their lowest stage since the Cold War.

In the US, Trump is already under attacks from those who say he was elected with help from Russian intelligence. Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov, said the Russian leader would congratulate Trump on taking office and exchange views on US-Russian ties.

Putin and Trump can smooth out the issues on Ukraine and Syria, the two sources of friction during the previous Obama administration. Removal of sanctions would help the slothful Russian economy and may help ease tensions in Europe. _