Helsinki meeting may thaw ice

The planned meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 16 in Helsinki, Finland, is expected to set the stage for an attempt to soothe tensions between the United States and Russia.

Both Trump and Putin have pursued the meeting with the hope they will be able to ease the frictions between the two countries over Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 US presidential election and the Ukraine crisis, among other issues. According to a White House statement, Trump and Putin will "discuss relations between the US and Russia and a range of national security issues", which hopefully may include arms control and disarmament issues.

Given the lingering tensions between the US and Russia, the meeting is undoubtedly of huge significance for both countries. However, Washington and Moscow lack common interests on many issues due to their weak economic links, increased energy competition, and uncompromising stances on geopolitical issues in Eastern Europe and the Middle East, thus there is little space for cooperation.