But the US has always been wary on the military coordination part of the deal, because it says Russian Federation has mainly targeted moderate, USA -backed opposition groups in a bid to prop up Assad.
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Speaking in China amid the G20 summit in China, President Barack Obama said a lack of trust between the United States and Russian Federation as a hindrance to an agreement between the two countries to establish peace in Syria.
Obama was asked at a news conference in China on Monday whether he intends to meet Duterte, as planned, at a gathering in Laos this week of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
“We are working for this region to be declared no-fly zone”, Erdogan said at the G20 meeting in China, referring to the land extending from Jarabulus to Azaz in northern Syria seized from IS jihadists.
President Barack Obama and Russian president Vladimir Putin have failed to force a breakthrough in negotiations over a ceasefire for Syria, but agreed to keep looking for a path to provide humanitarian relief to thousands of besieged civilians in the civil war-ravaged country.
Putin gave his support to Turkey over the July 15 coup attempt and said he stood by the elected government, offering his condolences to victims of what Erdogan called the “most heinous” armed coup attempt in modern Turkish history.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) talks to President Obama during a meeting at the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, China.
Editor’s Note: The following are U.S. President Barack Obama’s remarks about Ukraine, starting at the 14-minute mark and lasting for 90 seconds, at his G20 press conference on September 5 in Hangzhou, China.
Obama first held a “pull-aside” with President Francois Hollande of France and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to discuss the situation in Ukraine.
As for further details on the agreement, Putin said, “It is early now to speak of any parameters of our agreements, but I hope very much that the agreements will be reached, and I have the grounds to believe that this may happen within a few days”, according to TASS. “Of course, we also need to discuss this with the Syrian regime and Iran”, he said. Obama is scheduled to hold a news conference later Monday.
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Ahmed Osman, commander of the Sultan Murad rebel group, one of the Turkish-backed forces, told Reuters he would like to see a permanent “safe zone” but that this would require an agreement between Turkey, the United States and Russian Federation. But an ultimate agreement remained elusive with a White House official suggesting future meetings maybe the key to suspending the hostilities in Syria.
