4RUMP 0UTIN SUMMIT SET *ULY IN &INLAND

WASHINGTON/MOSCOW

(Reuters) – US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet for their first summit on July 16 in Helsinki, a venue famed for its Cold War diplomacy.

The Kremlin and the White House simultaneously announced the place and date a day after reaching agreement for the two leaders to meet following a visit to Moscow by US National Security Adviser John Bolton.

Trump will meet Putin after attending a July 11-12 summit of North Atlantic Treaty Organization leaders and a visit to Britain. The date will give Putin a chance to attend the July 15 closing ceremony of the soccer World Cup hosted by Russia.

The two leaders have met twice before on the sidelines of international gatherings and spoken at least eight times by phone. They have also made positive comments about each other now and then with Putin lauding Trump’s handling of the US economy.

The summit could irritate US allies, such as Britain, who want to isolate Putin, or countries such as Ukraine who are nervous about what they see as Trump’s overly friendly attitude toward the Russian leader.

It is also likely to go down badly among critics who question Trump’s commitment to the NATO alliance and who have been concerned about his frictions with longtime allies such as Canada and Germany over trade policy.

“The President is pursuing this meeting in the interest of national security and to determine whether Russia is willing to make progress in our relationship,” White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding that Trump hoped it would “help reduce tension.”