The leadership of the United States should view Russia as a superpower and competitor, not the enemy. This was stated by the US Senator Richard Shelby. Talking about the results of the talks with the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry Sergey Lavrov, the congressman noted that, despite the fact that relations between the two countries are currently difficult, rapprochement between Moscow and Washington can be "shared interests around the world," RIA Novosti reported. ". "Yes, we can be rivals, but we do not need to be adversaries," added Shelby. He also noted that during the talks with the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry, many serious issues were raised, but the main attention was paid to "the upcoming meeting of Presidents Trump and Putin".

Recall, the meeting of the Presidents of Russia and the United States will take place on July 16 in Finland. It will be the first official summit of the leaders of the two states. Previously, Putin and Trump communicated only in the fields of international events. Before the start of official negotiations in Helsinki, the leader of the White House plans to meet with the Russian president on a tete-a-tete.

Delegation of US congressmen arrived in Russia on June 30. Senators have already held a number of official meetings in St. Petersburg.