After a historic and successful, one-on-one meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, President Trump is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin next Monday on July 16 in the Finnish capital, Helsinki.
President Trump and Vladimir Putin at the Asia Pacific Economic Conference summit in Da Nang, Vietnam on November 17, 2017. Credit: TASS/Mihail Klimentyev
The meeting will be the first official summit between the two leaders after two brief meeting last year on the sidelines of global economic conferences. They are expected to discuss relations between the two nations including a “range of national security issues” according to The White House and Kremlin.
The face-to-face meeting comes at a time when Russo-western relations are at an all-time historic low, a situation that Trump The Disruptor, is keen in changing.
Presidents Trump and Vladimir Putin will have their first official meeting meet their first official meeting on July 16 in Helsinki, Finland. Credit: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images
Despite western animus towards Russia, most of which was in part due to Barack Obama’s weak and unclear foreign policy, the head of NATO welcomed the anticipated first official meeting between the leaders saying “dialogue is a sign of strength.”
“We don’t want a new Cold War, we don’t want to isolate Russia, we want to strive for a better relationship with Russia,” said Jens Stoltenberg.
President Trump with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hanoi, Vietnam. Credit: AP
President Trump’s visit to Helsinki will come after a NATO Summit on 11 and 12 July in Brussels and a visit to Britain for talks with PM Theresa during a 3-day visit to the United Kingdom.
Although the two leaders are expected to discuss an array of topics, Ukraine, the conflict in Syria and election meddling in the US by Russia are expected to top the list.
President Trump and Vladimir Putin at the Asia Pacific Economic Conference summit in Da Nang, Vietnam on November 17, 2017. Credit: TASS/Mihail Klimentyev
“I think we’ll be talking about many other subjects. And we’ll see what happens,” said Trump. “I think a lot of good things can come with meeting with people,” he added.
Trump, who has relentlessly argued and consistently argued advocated for improved relations with Russia believes dialogue not isolation is necessary for strategic geopolitical reasons, the outcome of which could be a resolution to a complexity of global issues.
President Trump at the G7 Summit in June in La Malbaie, Charlevoix, Quebec, Canada. Credit: Reuters
During the G7 Summit last month, he surprised allies when he said Russia should be reinstated back to the G7 formerly G8 group of the world’s leading economies
Russia was suspended from the group of industrialized nations in 2014 after its annexation Crimea from Ukraine after the country deposed of its President.
One-On-One Meetings
The two leaders instantly hit it off and quickly felt comfortable with each other – Singapore, June 12, 2018. Credit: Reuters
As a businessman, President Trump relies on one-on-one interactions and meetings to gauge personal chemistry with leaders and building interpersonal relationships with world leaders in a remaking of diplomatic overtures prior to any negotiation.
Trump and Putin have met twice before on the sidelines of global economic summits – the first one during a G20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany in July 2017. The second time was last November during the Asia-Pacific meeting where the two men met briefly. This will be their first official meeting.
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