WASHINGTON, October 15. /TASS/. US Special Envoy for Global Partnerships Paolo Zampolli said sports could reopen doors in Russia-US relations that have been closed because of politics.

"[US] President [Donald] Trump understands that sport can reopen doors that politics has kept closed," the diplomat who works within both the White House and the US State Department told TASS in an interview on Thursday.

According to him, "hockey is a natural place to begin because the United States and Russia share extraordinary talent, history and respect for the game." "But we should not stop at hockey," Trump’s envoy argued.