WATCH: Putin says Trump phone call signals intent to rebuild relations

Russian President Vladimir Putin has told visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that a telephone conversation with President Donald Trump this month encouraged him to think relations between Russia and the United States might improve.

Putin made the comments Tuesday at the beginning of a meeting with Pompeo and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Pompeo and Lavrov held three hours of talks earlier in the day.

Putin said his May 3 phone call with Trump “created the impression that the president intends to restore Russian-American connections and contacts to resolve joint issues that present mutual interests.”