"Russia is always ready for a constructive dialogue": what is the probability of a meeting between Putin and Trump at the G20

Russia is ready for dialogue with the United States, but the American side should first determine its intentions. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Therefore, we need a dialogue - please, we are ready. It is not needed - we will wait until they mature, ”he said on the NTV television channel.

The head of state touched upon the issue of Russian-American relations in the course of a direct line, held on June 20. Putin noted that the dialogue with the United States will not be easy because of the restrictions imposed by the United States government institutions.

The Russian president also noted that, in his opinion, Donald Trump makes decisions on his own, but the structure of the US political system does not allow him to implement many ideas.

In addition, Putin appreciated the likelihood of meeting with the head of the White House.

“Dialogue is always good, it is always in demand. Of course, if the American side shows interest in this, we are ready for this dialogue as much as our partners are ready for this, ”he explained.

"Trump is looking forward to meeting"

Recall the G20 summit in Osaka will be held June 28-29. In May, Trump announced his intention to meet with Putin during the G-20. AFP reports that on June 12 the head of the White House confirmed his intention to meet with the Russian leader.

Later, on June 23, US National Security Advisor John Bolton, at a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, reiterated that Trump expects to meet with Putin in Japan.

"President Trump is looking forward to meeting President Putin at the upcoming G20 summit in Osaka, Japan," Bolton said.

The Russian side on the question of the possibility of negotiations between the two leaders said that first it is worth waiting for the G20 summit itself.

“Let's wait for the G-20 with you,” Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the Russian president, called on Russia 1 on June 23.

Answering the question whether Putin is counting on returning from Osaka “with peace,” the Kremlin representative said that all international contacts of the Russian president would be devoted to this topic.

“I have no doubts, at least, all the contacts of the president, which are still being made up and planned, will be devoted to this,” said Peskov.

A few days before that, on June 16, Peskov said that there were no concrete initiatives and proposals from the United States on talks with Russia at the highest level during the G20 summit in Japan. According to him, we can talk about the meeting of the two leaders "on their feet."

Trump himself said that he did not rule out the possibility of discussing the issue of “interference” in the American elections, which was investigated by the FBI with Putin in Osaka. The results of this work were summed up in April.

"Maybe. Maybe. If you want, I will do it, ”he said, answering a question about the likelihood of discussing“ interference ”in elections in an interview with NBC.

"Russia's position remains unchanged"

Recall that the last meeting between Putin and Trump was held in the framework of the G20 forum in Argentina in December last year, but the conversation between the two leaders was short-lived.

The first thorough conversation of the heads of two states was a tete-a-tete held in July 2018 during the Russian-American summit in Helsinki.

Russia is always ready for a constructive dialogue, the president and other high-ranking officials of the Russian Federation are constantly making such statements, said Vladimir Shapovalov, deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics at Moscow State University, in an interview with RT.

“Russia's position on the possibility and feasibility of a dialogue with the United States remains unchanged,” he said. At the same time, he noted that Trump's position is inconstant and illogical.

“The only thing that is constant in this position is its unpredictability. Trump is changing his views on diametrically opposed in a short period of time, ”says Shapovalov.

He noted that at the end of the investigation into the “interference” of Russia in the American elections, Trump said that he was ready to meet with the Russian president, but then the topic left the agenda of the head of the White House.

The expert suggested that Trump is wary of any communication with Russia, since it may be misinterpreted by his opponents within the United States. In addition, according to Shapovalov, the head of the president of the United States has nothing to offer Moscow.

“At the moment, all the thoughts of the American president are focused on how to effectively enter the election campaign, what to promise the elector, how to hit the competitors. Obviously, this situation does not favor a normal, effective dialogue on the global agenda, ”the expert concluded.

Bohdan Bezpalko, a member of the Council on Interethnic Relations under the President of Russia, is of the opinion that in connection with the start of the election campaign, Trump will have to take into account the opinion of those political forces that are opposed to Russia and will accuse Trump if he goes to dialogue with Moscow.

“He understands very well that if he wins this election, he will again be blamed for not receiving this post due to his charisma, business talents, or even some clumsy foreign policy, but because Russian hackers allegedly interfered again which brought him to power a second time in a row, ”said Bezpalko in an interview with RT.