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The US president has invited Vladimir Putin to meet in the coming months in a third country to discuss the full range of issues in bilateral relations. This happened in a telephone conversation between Joe Biden and the Russian president, about which first announced The White House.
Later message also appeared on the Kremlin’s website, but it only said that the US president had proposed “to consider the possibility of holding a personal summit in the foreseeable future.”
Also today, US intelligence released the public part of the annual report on threats to national security, which said that Russia is not looking for a direct conflict with the United States, but is willing to cooperate pragmatically and seeks a non-interference agreement with Washington.
However, in 2021, Moscow will continue to “apply various tactics to undermine American influence, sow discord in the Western world and weaken its alliances.” In the near future, Russia remains the most serious opponent of the United States in weapons of mass destruction and is a threat in cyberspace and outer space.
As for the phone call from Washington, Biden said it was “clear that the United States would be firm in defending its national interests, including on issues such as hacking attacks and election interference. Support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity was reaffirmed. and Putin has been called upon to ease tensions on Ukraine’s borders.
“President Biden has reaffirmed his desire to build stable and predictable relations with Russia,” the White House said in a statement.
The Russian statement said the talks were initiated by Biden, who reaffirmed his invitation to Putin for a summit on climate issues on April 22-23. “During the exchange of views on the internal Ukrainian problem, Vladimir Putin laid out the grounds for the Minsk” Complex of Measures “approach to a political settlement of the crisis.”
“The United States is our adversary and is doing everything possible to undermine Russia’s position on the world stage,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying by Russian media. According to Reuters, such a tone is a signal that Moscow will strongly defend what it considers its own sphere of influence.
© Reuters
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