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Putin Says He Wants to Step Up Disarmament Talks With Trump

Russian president insists that he's suddenly interested in “strengthening international stability” and wants to hold talks.

Vladimir Putin has said he's ready to step up talks with Donald Trump on disarmament, although many will doubt whether the Russian president's actions will match up with his words. Putin insisted that he wants to hold disarmament talks in order to “strengthen international stability”—something he's shown little interest in before. Putin claimed in an interview with Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera that he talked about disarmament with Trump on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan. “I think that reaching concrete measures in the field of disarmament would contribute to strengthen international stability,” Putin is quoted as saying. “Russia has the political willingness to do it. Now it is up to the U.S. ... Recently, it seems that Washington has started to reflect about stepping up dialogue with Russia over a wide strategic agenda.” Putin is in Italy to meet with Pope Francis and Italian leader Giuseppe Conte.