U.S. national security adviser John Bolton plans to travel to Moscow in the next few days to discuss a potential meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin, the White House said hours after the Kremlin suggested Bolton's trip would take place.
"On June 25-27, U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton will meet with U.S. allies in London and Rome to discuss national security issues, and travel to Moscow to discuss a potential meeting between Presidents Trump and Putin," Garrett Marquis, special assistant to the president, wrote on Twitter.
Bolton's specific itinerary was not immediately released.
The U.S. comments come hours after Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had indicated to reporters that Bolton would visit Moscow.
"As far as we know, such a trip will actually take place. This is all that we can say right now," Peskov told reporters on June 21 when asked whether Moscow was expecting Bolton's visit.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia was "ready for contacts" with the United States.
"If the agreement on a high-level meeting is reached, it will be announced," Lavrov added.
The U.S. president said in March he would meet Putin soon, but since then ties between Washington and Moscow have further deteriorated over the conflict in Syria and the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain, which the West blames on Moscow.
