Obama-Putin talks ‘blunt, business-like’
By in Hangzhou Published: Sep 06, 2016 12:57 AM
His 90-minute meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G20) summit was candid, blunt and business-like, covering issues such as Syria and Ukraine, US President Barack Obama said at a press conference on Monday in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province.
Discussions on Syria have been taking place between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Obama said, warning that the Russian ally's relentless bombing is strengthening the ability of extremist groups to recruit new members, which is a very dangerous dynamic.
The discussions were productive but the two leaders failed to reach an agreement, and Obama said Kerry and Lavrov will keep working over the next few days.
On the Ukraine issue, Obama said he made it clear to Russia that the US will not "pull down sanctions" until Russia implements the Minsk agreement.
Obama also mentioned his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on excess capacity.
"In my bilateral conversations with President Xi, there was an agreement that we would make progress on dealing with steel overcapacity, which, by the way, is consistent with President Xi's plans to reorient the economy so that it is not so heavily dependent on State-owned enterprises and the export model," he noted.
According to an outcomes list from the foreign ministry after the Saturday meeting between Xi and Obama, both countries said excess capacity in steel and other industries is a global issue which requires a collective response.
The G20 agreed to put together an intensive process of gathering all the data, determining steps need to be taken, and which would be reported at next year's G20 in Hamburg where specific policy decisions will be made, Obama said.
Discussions on Syria have been taking place between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Obama said, warning that the Russian ally's relentless bombing is strengthening the ability of extremist groups to recruit new members, which is a very dangerous dynamic.
The discussions were productive but the two leaders failed to reach an agreement, and Obama said Kerry and Lavrov will keep working over the next few days.
On the Ukraine issue, Obama said he made it clear to Russia that the US will not "pull down sanctions" until Russia implements the Minsk agreement.
Obama also mentioned his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on excess capacity.
"In my bilateral conversations with President Xi, there was an agreement that we would make progress on dealing with steel overcapacity, which, by the way, is consistent with President Xi's plans to reorient the economy so that it is not so heavily dependent on State-owned enterprises and the export model," he noted.
According to an outcomes list from the foreign ministry after the Saturday meeting between Xi and Obama, both countries said excess capacity in steel and other industries is a global issue which requires a collective response.
The G20 agreed to put together an intensive process of gathering all the data, determining steps need to be taken, and which would be reported at next year's G20 in Hamburg where specific policy decisions will be made, Obama said.
