U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed confidence that the U.S. and Russia will work together to end the North Korean nuclear threat. 

Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday held their first summit talks at the presidential palace in Helsinki, Finland. 

In a joint press conference after the much-anticipated meeting that lasted four hours, Trump said they discussed nuclear proliferation, which he described as one of the most critical challenges facing humanity. 

Trump said that he provided an update on his meeting last month with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on the North's denuclearization. 

He said that after Monday's summit, he is "very sure" that President Putin and Russia want to end the North's nuclear threat and that Washington and Moscow will work together to reach that goal, adding he appreciates that commitment.

In response, Putin said that he is glad that the Korean Peninsula issue is starting to be resolved, adding it was possible thanks to the personal engagement of President Trump, who opted for dialogue instead of confrontation.

The news conference, which was broadcast live, was dominated by the issue of alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. 

Trump said that there was no collusion between his election camp and the Kremlin, calling the expansive federal investigation of Russian interference "a disaster" for the U.S.

Putin also denied his country meddled in the 2016 election, but he did admit he wanted Trump to win the election.