Kremlin: Putin, Trump to hold talks in neutral venue

Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump have agreed to meet at a neutral venue ahead of any state visits, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed.

"They have exchanged invitations, and now, President Trump has a standing invitation to visit Russia, and the Russian president has a standing invitation to visit the United States," Peskov told VGTRK journalist Pavel Zarubin. "However, they also agreed to arrange a working meeting in a third country in the near future," he pointed out, The Caspian Post reports, citing TASS.

"That said, according to the presidents’ plan, the meeting will take place before any eventual exchange of visits," Peskov explained, adding: "It’s this meeting that aides will now coordinate at the working level."

Commenting on Trump’s remark that Saudi Arabia could host the meeting, Peskov noted: "No final decision has been made but Saudi Arabia and Riyadh were mentioned as potential venues."

According to the Russian presidential spokesman, the Gulf kingdom is a good partner both for Russia and the US, so "this is a place that suits everybody." "However, a decision has yet to be finalized. It will be made via diplomatic channels," Peskov concluded.

Putin and Trump last met during the latter’s first presidential term, at the end of June 2019. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan.