Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today that Russian President Vladimir Putin would welcome the desire of the newly elected US President Donald Trump for contacts, but noted that there are currently no concrete steps for such interaction, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
According to Peskov, it is more appropriate to wait for the new US president, who will take office on January 20, to take the first step.
In connection with Trump's statements regarding Greenland and Canada, Peskov emphasized that the Arctic falls within the zone of Russia's strategic national interests. Moscow is closely monitoring developments in the region and is focused on ensuring peace and stability, he added.
On another important issue, Peskov said that Russia is demanding an objective and impartial investigation into the crash of an Embraer plane of Azerbaijan Airlines, which occurred near the Kazakh city of Aktau on December 25 last year. The incident killed at least 38 people.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has demanded transparency and justice from the Kremlin, indicating that the tragedy may have been caused by an accidental malfunction during Russian gunfire, Reuters reported.
President Vladimir Putin has issued a rare public apology, although the Kremlin has not confirmed direct involvement of Russian air defenses in the incident, the world agency explained.