Russia says no vested interest in any U.S. presidential candidate

RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin has said on that Moscow is interested in developing relations with the United States, irrespective of who will become the next American president.

According to a report by Reuters, Putin said, “We are ready to work with any president, for whom the American people will vote.”

“It’s them (the Americans) who try all the time to prompt us who to vote for,” Putin said.

In another development, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has spoken by telephone on Tuesday with his Russian counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov where they focused the conflict in Syria.

United States Department spokesman John Kirby did not immediately offer details of the call between Kerry and Lavrov. U.S. officials are worried that Russia is increasing its military presence in Syria and have expressed concern about whether Moscow is boosting support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.