Russian Muslims hope Obama to improve US-Russia ties

Moscow, Nov 9 (UNI) Russian Muslims have expressed the hope that US President-elect Barack Obama will be able to improve relations between Washington and Moscow.

''First of all, we congratulate Obama over his historic victory,'' the Deputy Head of the Council of Muftis of Russia Damir Gizatullin said.

''We hope that relations between our countries will improve,'' RIA Novosti news agency quoted him as saying.

Gizatullin added that Russian Muslims have a positive opinion of the newly elected US President and are happy with his election.

''It is probably because the new US President has Islamic roots,'' he said.

Relations between Russia and the US have plunged to a post-Cold War low in recent years over a host of differences, including the deployment of the US missile defence system in Central Europe and a brief conflict in August between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia, a Georgian breakaway republic.

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