Trump and Putin have 'positive' exchange in lengthy phone conversation

Presidents of Russia and the US agree to reset ties between Moscow and Washington.

US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held a lengthy telephone conversation on Saturday (28 January) which was a "positive" exchange between the leaders of two key geopolitical powers. In their first such conversation since Trump took office, the two agreed that tackling global terrorism was top priority.

During the hour-long talks, the White House said that the duo agreed on resetting US-Russia ties, which are "in need of repair". The short statement added that a wide range of subjects were on the agenda.

"The positive call was a significant start to improving the relationship between the United States and Russia that is in need of repair. Both President Trump and President Putin are hopeful that after today's call the two sides can move quickly to tackle terrorism and other important issues of mutual concern," the Trump administration said.

Additionally, Kremlin provided a detailed account of the talks in a statement and said that top authorities from both the countries' governments would work together in organising a face-to-face meeting soon.

The Russian presidential office said: "The two leaders emphasised that joining efforts in fighting the main threat – international terrorism – is a top priority. The presidents spoke out for establishing real coordination of actions between Russia and the USA aimed at defeating ISIS and other terrorists groups in Syria."

However, both the statements did not mention anything about the US-engineered sanctions imposed on Russia.

Relations between Russia and the Western world especially the US plunged to a new low over the past few years following Moscow's annexure of Crimea, which was part of Ukraine. The US, backed by the European Union, sanctioned Russia over its aggression placing ties between the two countries in one of the lowest points since the Cold War era.

Besides Putin, Trump had spoke other world leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, in whirlwind day of diplomacy.