Russia said on Wednesday it wants to develop relations with the United States on a mutually beneficial basis.

In remarks to a YouTube show, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the ministry is doing its part to prepare for a potential meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden.

“From the doctrinal, ideological and political point of view, we have wanted and still want to develop our relations with the US, I mean the US people, on a mutually beneficial basis, so that it is useful and necessary for our two countries. But the rhetoric and the steps that the US has been taking recently make the attempts to ignore this just impossible,” Zakharova told Soloviev Live, a YouTube show.

“This is the mandate of the presidential administration. As you know, we are certainly doing our part,” Zakharova was quoted as saying by Sputnik news agency.

Earlier, the White House said President Joe Biden in a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin asked him to de-escalate the situation on the border.

During their Tuesday’s phone conversation, Biden invited the Russian leader to hold a meeting in a third country in the coming months.

Source: Agencies