In New Year letters, Vladimir Putin says Russia open for dialogue with US, pledges continued support to Syria

Moscow: Russian president Vladimir Putin, in a New Year letter to his US counterpart Donald Trump, said on Sunday that Moscow was ready for dialogue on a “wide-ranging agenda”, the Kremlin said in a statement. In a separate letter to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Putin pledged continuation of aid to the Syrian government and people in the “fight against terrorism”. Putin also sent New Year greetings to world leaders including prime ministers Theresa May of Britain and Shinzo Abe of Japan, as well as Chinese president Xi Jinping.