White House names another topic of Putin-Trump talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed the state of relations between their two countries in a phone call, the White House said.

The official reason for the call, according to both sides, was for Putin to thank Trump for what White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said was “information the United States provided that helped foil a potential holiday terrorist attack in Russia.”

Gidley said both presidents committed to continuing counterterrorism cooperation between the two countries, Reuters reported.

“The presidents also discussed the state of relations between the United States and Russia and future efforts to support effective arms control,” he said, an apparent reference to Trump’s stated desire for a new nuclear arms control deal.