Russian President Vladimir Putin called U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday morning to thank him for providing a tip that allegedly thwarted a terrorist bomb plot in St. Petersburg, officials said.
The Kremlin was the first first to share details about the call and White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders later confirmed the phone exchange on Twitter.
According to the Russian government, Putin thanked Trump because the CIA provided Russian intelligence with information that led to the arrest of seven suspects who allegedly planned to explode bombs at Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg and other public locations in that city.
The Federal Security Service, the Russian intelligence agency known as the FSB, released a statement on Sunday that said the terrorist cell planned to send suicide bombers into St. Petersburg on Dec. 16. The plot also included placing explosives in public areas.
Explosives, automatic weapons, ammunition and extremist literature were also seized in a raid, Russian officials said.
The Kremlin noted that Putin assured Trump that Russian law enforcement agencies would immediately pass along any information about potential threats to the United States.
As of 12:30 p.m. ET Sunday, the White House had not provided any details about the call beyond that it took place.
It was at least the second time the two leaders have talked on the phone within the past few days. On Friday, Trump revealed that he called the Russian leader a day earlier to thank him for comments Putin made about Trump’s ability to grow the American economy during a press conference.
“Look at how much the markets have grown in this short period of time,” Putin said at the Thursday press conference. “It means that the investors trust the American economy, it means they trust whatever President Trump is doing in this area.”