LOS CABOS, Mexico - U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on June 18 that the violence in Syria has to end but they offered no new solutions and showed no signs of healing a rift over whether to impose tougher sanctions on Damascus.
With the bloodshed in Syria getting worse and after a week
of Cold War-style recriminations between U.S. and Russian
diplomats, the talks at a Group of 20 summit in Mexico tested
whether Obama and Putin could forge a working relationship.
But the two leaders appeared to share little common ground
on the fate of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and their
mostly chilly personal encounter suggested a less-than-promising
start.
It was their first meeting since Putin’s return to the
presidency last month, and the two leaders sought to paper over
disputes on arming Damascus and the prospects for further U.N.
action.
“We agreed that we need to see a cessation of the violence,
that a political process has to be created to prevent civil
war,” Obama told reporters after the talks, which went on for
some two hours – longer than originally planned.
“From my point of view, we have found many common points on
this issue (of Syria),” Putin said, adding the two sides would
continue discussions.
The talks came as Syrian security forces pounded opposition
areas across the country. Intense artillery fire was reported in
Douma, a town 15 km (9 miles) outside the Syrian capital that
for weeks has been under the partial control of rebels who have
joined the revolt against Assad.
U.S. and Russian officials described the meeting here as
positive and business-like but the demeanor of both leaders was
cool and detached.
It was a personal dynamic that contrasted sharply with the
chumminess that Putin and Obama’s predecessor, George W. Bush –
dubbed “The George and Vladimir Show” by the media – used to
show in their meetings.
As journalists entered the cramped hotel ballroom, the two
leaders were leaning toward each other in discussion, neither
smiling. Obama initiated a handshake for the cameras while both
he and Putin remained seated.
Obama sometimes gestured toward Putin as he spoke but Putin
sat more stiffly through the joint appearance. At the end of
their statements, as reporters were being ushered out, both sat
glumly watching but made no move to re-engage with each other.
The hardened tone appears to mark the endpoint of Obama’s
“reset” of ties with Russia, pursued with Putin’s predecessor,
Dmitry Medvedev, with whom Obama shared a strong rapport.
SYRIA CLASH
With Assad continuing his bloody, 15-month assault on the
opposition, Obama and Western allies want Moscow to stop using
its veto to shield him from further U.N. Security Council
sanctions aimed at forcing him from power.
Putin, a former KGB spymaster, is suspicious of U.S.
motives, especially after the NATO-assisted ouster of Libyan
leader Muammar Gaddafi last year, and he has offered little sign
of softening his stance on Syria.
Though Washington has shown no appetite for a new
Libya-style intervention, Russia is reluctant to abandon its
Syrian ally, a longtime arms customer, and risk losing its last
firm foothold in the Middle East, including access to a
warm-water navy base.
Diplomatic efforts have been further complicated by Obama’s
re-election battle against Republican Mitt Romney – who has
called Russia “our number one geopolitical foe.”
Obama was under pressure to avoid giving Republicans an
opening to accuse him of being soft on Moscow at a time when he
is already struggling to defend his record on the economy. At
the same time, he faces criticism for not providing stronger
leadership on Syria.
For his part, Putin was in no mood for concessions that
could be seen as weakness as he seeks to quell dissent at home
with tactics that have drawn U.S. criticism. He was also thought
to be wary of making commitments to an American president
whose future remains uncertain beyond the Nov. 6 election.
Obama and Putin discussed Syria longer than any other topic
– at least a third of their meeting, according to U.S.
ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul.
Aides said Obama and Putin found some common ground.
“The sides reiterated their support for Kofi Annan’s plan
and the need to work to push this plan forward,” said Putin’s
spokesman, Dmitry Peskov.
“The discussion about political process for the Russians is
not just to focus on this one event, whether Assad goes and when
he goes,” McFaul, the U.S. ambassador, told reporters. “They
want to have a bigger discussion about it. They want to say:
Well, what happens the day after?”
Suspension of the U.N. monitoring mission in Syria over the
weekend put added pressure on Obama and Putin to act decisively
to keep the conflict from spiraling into civil war.
The rift between the two sides intensified last week when
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Russia of supplying
Assad with attack helicopters.
“Russia does not sell helicopters to Syria, Russia is
repairing helicopters sold (a) long time ago,” Peskov said.
“Vladimir Putin always believed that state officials should use
reliable sources of information.”
IRAN, VISITS
The meeting between Obama and Putin also touched on missile
defense, arms reduction, and trade.
Obama said the two leaders agreed on the need for a
diplomatic solution to Iran’s nuclear standoff with the West.
“We agreed that there’s still time and space to resolve
diplomatically the issue of Iran’s potential development of
nuclear weapons, as well as its interest in developing peaceful
nuclear power,” he said.
Despite the presidents’ stiff interaction during their
encounter, Obama ended the appearance on a courteous note.
“Mr. President, I look forward to visiting Russia again, and
I look forward to hosting you in the United States,” he said.
Putin did not attend a G8 summit hosted by Obama at his
presidential retreat at Camp David last month. The meeting
between the two men was rescheduled to neutral ground in Mexico.
“I invite you to visit Moscow,” Putin said.
