Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko called for Washington’s "resolute support...in countering Russian aggression," as he and President-elect Donald Trump spoke by telephone for the first time since the U.S. election.
In a statement posted on November 15 to his website, Poroshenko said he was ready to work with Trump's new administration to strengthen bilateral ties.
He said the two agreed to meet in the future and that the groundwork was being laid for Poroshenko to visit Washington early in 2017. However, Poroshenko did not mention a specific date.
The statement said Poroshenko also stressed the need for Washington’s support for Ukraine to implement "crucial reforms."
It made no mention of Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Russia seized and illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
That annexation has been rejected by the United States and nearly all United Nations member states.
There was no immediate comment from Trump's transition team about the phone call.
The conversation came one day after Trump held a similar talk with Russia's President Vladimir Putin and both issued optimistic statements abuout the prospects of improving U.S.-Russian relations.
