By ,
Published January 27, 2017
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are scheduled Saturday to have their first phone call since Trump became president, White House sources told Fox News.
Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday that Putin intends to congratulate Trump on taking office, adding that the two leaders are also “exchange views about main parameters of current bilateral relations."
The two last spoke when Putin congratulated Trump on his presidential election victory.
The Kremlin has applauded Trump's promises to mend ties with Moscow, which have plunged to post-Cold War lows over the Ukrainian crisis, the war in Syria and allegations of Russian meddling in the U.S. elections. Russian officials and lawmakers have warned, however, that rebuilding ravaged ties will take time.
Barack Obama's administration and the European Union slapped Moscow with sanctions for its annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and support for a pro-Russia insurgency in eastern Ukraine.
The restrictions have limited Russian companies' access to international financial markets and barred key technology transfers, helping drive the Russian economy into recession. Russia has responded by banning imports of most Western agricultural products.
Asked about the claims that Trump was considering an order to lift the U.S. sanctions against Russia, Peskov said he has no information about it.
Fox News’ John Roberts and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/putin-trump-plan-weekend-phone-chat