MOSCOW, October 2. /TASS/. The chief of Russia’s General Staff, General Valery Gerasimov, has held phone talks with the newly appointed chairman of US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mike Milley, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.

"During the phone talks the senior military officers discussed the issues of mutual interest," the defense ministry said.

Milley has taken over as the US top military officer, succeeding US Marine Corps General Joseph Dunford. The former Joint Chiefs chairman was appointed to this position by former President Barack Obama in 2015, and two years later was reappointed by Donald Trump. In late July, the Senate approved General Mike Milley, nominated by Trump, as Joint Chiefs chairman. Since August 2015 Milley, 61, has been serving as the US Army chief of staff.

Milley earlier said that the dialogue between the US and Russian militaries was crucial to lower the risks of "accidental escalation". For his part, Dunford pointed out that he was content with the US-Russia contacts in the military field, including those with Chief of Russia’s General Staff Gerasimov.