29 January 2017•Update: 29 January 2017
By Humeyra Atilgan Buyukovali
ANKARA
U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Saturday for the first time since the former was elected last November.
The two leaders had a detailed discussion over international issues "including the fight against terrorism, the situation in the Middle East, the Arab-Israeli conflict, strategic stability and non-proliferation, the situation with Iran’s nuclear program, and the Korean Peninsula issue,” according to a statement by the Kremlin.
Trump and Putin "emphasized that joining efforts in fighting the main threat – international terrorism – is a top priority," the statement said.
"The presidents spoke out for establishing real coordination of actions between Russia and the USA aimed at defeating ISIS and other terrorists groups in Syria,” it added.
A White House statement said Trump also spoke on the phone with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe over the U.S.-Japan alliance and cooperation on regional and global issues.
"President Trump and Prime Minister Abe said they would consult and cooperate on the threat posed by North Korea," it said.
The two leaders agreed to meet in Washington on Feb. 10.
Also on Sunday, US President talked over the phone to his French counterpart Francois Hollande, stressing the continuation of counter-terror operations in Syria and Iraq.
Hollande said only a political solution is sustainable in the Syria crisis, according to a statement from the Elysee Palace.
The French president also underlined the significance of NATO in transatlantic security.
President Trump and German Chancellor Merkel also covered a range of issues on the phone, "including NATO, the situation in the Middle East and North Africa, relations with Russia, and the Ukraine crisis," a statement from White House said.
Both leaders underlined the need to strengthen cooperation against terrorism.
According to the statement, Trump and Merkel "agreed on the NATO Alliance's fundamental importance to the broader transatlantic relationship".
The US President accepted the Chancellor's invitation to the G-20 Summit in Hamburg in July, the statement said.
