Obama also spent about 90 minutes Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, another leader whose fate seems intertwined with Obama’s in all the wrong ways.
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Turkey on Tuesday said it hoped a ceasefire in Syria could be implemented in time for a major Islamic holiday that begins next week, despite the failure of world powers to announce a deal at the G20 summit in China. The FBI has also reportedly warned election officials across the country to take measures to secure their computer systems, after foreign attackers were found to have hacked two state election databases in IL and Arizona.
Moscow and Washington support different sides in Syria’s festering conflict that has left 290,000 dead, with Russian Federation backing President Bashar al-Assad while the United States supports rebel groups fighting him. The package would include provisions so aid can reach besieged areas of Syria and measures to prevent Assad’s government from bombing areas where US -backed rebels are operating.
“But given the gap of trust that exists, that is a tough negotiation and we have not closed the gap yet”.
Obama didn’t detail the trouble spots, although he suggested the U.S. has concerns about Russian Federation holding up its end of the bargain and enforcing the terms.
It’s unclear what, exactly, is holding up an agreement.
The campaign of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton alleged that Russian Federation had released the emails to influence the November presidential election.
Mr Putin has denied his government was involved, but cheered the release of the information.
The president expressed concerns to Putin about cybersecurity issues, but would not detail the discussions. Putin’s persistent support for the Syrian regime, Moscow’s moves in Ukraine and the charge that Russian Federation may be meddling in the United States presidential contest have built a deeply antagonistic dynamic between the two leaders. There was agreement, not just between myself and Mr. (Vladimir) Putin, but with Chancellor (Angela) Merkel and President (Francois) Hollande, that that effort should increase in urgency over the next several weeks.
The hard diplomacy on Syria set the tone for an uneven few days for Mr Obama on his last tour through Asia as president.
He added: “Now in this summit, to all of our friends, we have brought up this issue and told them this”.
But the focus on climate quickly gave way to the failed Syria talks.
“Many of the groups considered acceptable by the U.S, have actually affiliated with the Nusra Front, while the Nusra Front is using them to avoid being attacked”, Ryabkov told Russian media, citing a longstanding complaint of his government.
Kerry and Lavrov’s talks on the sidelines of the Group of 20 economic summit represent their third significant attempt since July to finalize a new U.S.
“It was constructive”, a U.S. official said after the meeting, noting that all differences were not resolved.
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“Typically the tone of our meetings are candid, blunt, businesslike – and this one was no different”, Obama said.
