Still, Putin described the fact that they were meeting as a positive sign in itself, and he said he hoped the meeting would “yield positive results.”“Phone conversations are never enough definitely,” Putin said. The heavily anticipated meeting is being closely scrutinized for signs of how friendly a rapport Trump and Putin will have. Trump’s predecessor, President Barack Obama, had notoriously strained ties to Putin, and Trump has expressed an interest in a better U.S.-Russia relationship. In the lead-up to the meeting, Trump used a speech in Warsaw on Thursday to voice a list of grievances about Russia. In Washington, Trump has been under intense pressure from both parties to confront Putin over the election interference.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer July 07, 2017 15:11 UTC