Trump and Putin to meet in Helsinki on July 16

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02:10

The summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place in Helsinki, Finland on July 16, both the Kremlin and the White House confirmed on Thursday.

They said the two leaders will discuss the current state and future of US-Russia relations as well as a range of national security issues.

Boise State Broncos fans wear Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin masks during second half action between the Wyoming Cowboys and the Boise State Broncos in Boise, Idaho, Oct. 21, 2017. /VCG Photo

Topics of discussion will also include Ukraine and Syria, Trump said at the White House on Wednesday, and potentially Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.

'Good things'

"I think we’ll be talking about Syria. I think we’ll be talking about Ukraine. I think we’ll be talking about many other subjects. And we’ll see what happens. You never know about meetings what happens, right?" the US president said later Wednesday.

"I think a lot of good things can come with meetings with people."

Both sides have played down expectations of what the talks can hope to produce, saying the fact that Trump and Putin are meeting at all is an achievement in itself.

On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also told US lawmakers he was sure that Trump would confront Putin about allegations that Russian agents interfered in Western elections – including Trump’s own 2016 campaign.

But one day later, Trump himself returned to Twitter to undercut his chief diplomat and declare: "Russia continues to say they had nothing to do with Meddling in our Election!"

A chance to revive ties

The announcement came after Putin's meeting with visiting US National Security Adviser John Bolton in Moscow on Wednesday.

At the start of the meeting at the Kremlin, Putin said that Bolton's visit raised hope that both Russia and the US can at least take the first step to revive full-blown ties.

US National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks during a press conference in Moscow, June 27, 2018. /VCG Photo

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The relationship between the two nations has been strained by the election meddling probe in the US, the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in the UK and Trump's decision to pull out of the Iranian nuclear deal.

The two leaders last met in November on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific summit in Vietnam.

July 7, 2017: Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump shake hands during their meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg. /VCG Photo

China welcomes the summit

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said earlier that it welcomed the summit as it will help in addressing global issues.

"Both Russia and the United States bear important responsibilities for international peace and security," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said in a recent interview.

"It is definitely good for the cause of international peace and development that Russia and the US improve their bilateral relations and the two sides can enhance communication and dialogue."

May 17, 2018: NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg listens as US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House. /VCG Photo

NATO chief: I believe in dialogue

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday welcomed the summit, saying it was in line with the alliance's policy of talking to Moscow while maintaining a strong defense.

"I welcome the upcoming meeting between President Trump and President Putin because I believe in dialogue. NATO's approach to Russia is what we call a dual-track approach, it is defense and dialogue," Stoltenberg said as he arrived for an EU summit.

Finnish president: Welcome

Finnish President Sauli Niinisto Thursday said he welcomed the planned dialogue.

"The agenda of the meeting of Presidents Trump and Putin will be decided during the next two weeks, but they will certainly discuss the overall international situation and hopefully also arms control and disarmament issues," he said in a written statement.

"Even small steps in reducing tensions would be in everybody’s interest."

Finland's capital played host to major cold war summits between leaders such as Leonid Brezhnev and Gerald Ford in 1975, and Mikhail Gorbachev and George Bush Sr. in 1990, before going on to host a meeting between Boris Yeltsin and Bill Clinton in 1997.

Before the summit

The Russian foreign ministry said that a possible meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is under discussion, RIA news agency reported on Thursday.