G20 summit underway in China

The leaders of Russia and the US have finally come to a common understanding on the issue of the conflict in Syria, President Putin said, following a Monday meeting with his US counterpart Barack Obama on the sidelines of the G20 summit in China. Moscow and Washington may reach an agreement on resolving the crisis in the Middle Eastern country shortly, Putin said.

"Our collaborative effort with the US in fighting terrorist organizations, including the ones in Syria, may be significantly improved and intensified," the Russian leader told a press conference on the results of the summit.

READ MORE: Putin: Russia & US may reach agreement on Syria 'within next few days'

Leaders from the world's top economies said on Monday that Britain's vote to exit the European Union added uncertainty to the global economic outlook but G20 economies were well positioned to deal with the economic and financial fallout. In a communique wrapping up the G20 summit in the Chinese city of Hangzhou, leaders said that monetary policy alone could not lead to balanced growth, and pledged to not devalue their currencies for competitive gain. The statement was first published in French on the website of the French Presidency. (Reuters)

Speaking at a press conference on the results of the G20 summit, US leader Barack Obama talked about his meeting with Putin, saying that they discussed "a range of issues." The situation in Syria was among the most important of them, Obama said, adding that he and Putin talked "ways in which we can institute a meaningful, serious, verifiable cessation of hostilities in Syria and our capacity to provide some humanitarian relief to" the Syrian people.

"Typically the tone of our meetings is candid, blunt, businesslike - and this one was no different," the US president said, adding that in China he and Putin "had some productive conversations," as both countries need to "focus attention on common enemies, like ISIL [Islamic State] and Al-Nusra."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggested the creation of a no-fly zone over northern Syria. The proposal was addressed to Russian President Vladimir Putin and US leader Barack Obama at the G20 summit, he said at a press conference, TASS reports, citing Turkey‘s TRT channel. Erdogan said the measure is required to “assure the peaceful life of Syrians” on the border with Turkey and between the cities of Jarablus and Azaz in particular. Since August 24, Turkey has been conducting a ground operation in Syria against Islamic State (IS, formerly known as ISIS/ISIL) near Jarablus and the surrounding areas.

Economic cooperation is among the main priorities on the agenda of relations between Russia and Egypt, President Putin said at his bilateral meeting with Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on the G20 sidelines. The governments and parliaments of the two nations are in contact, while cooperation has also been established between Russia's and Egypt's law enforcement, Putin said, adding that he always has a range of issues to discuss with the Egyptian leader.

Argentina is Russia's "remarkable trade and economic partner in Latin America," President Putin said during a meeting with his Argentine counterpart Mauricio Macri on the G20 sidelines on Monday. Saying that he was happy to meet in person with the Argentine leader, who has been in office since 2015, Putin said that the countries' various ministries are in constant contact, and that cooperation is developing in several directions. "We closely cooperate in both international and regional formats," the Russian leader said.

Together with Putin, a number of other officials and top businessmen attended the meeting in Hangzhou with their Argentine counterparts, including Russia's foreign and finance ministers, as well as the heads of Gazprom and Rosneft.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Barack Obama discussed Syria and Ukraine during their meeting at the G20 summit in China, Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Monday. “The meeting lasted longer than planned. It mainly focused on Syria, as well as Ukraine. After that, Obama and Putin spoke tête-à-tête,” Peskov told reporters, adding that “work will be continued.”
After the members of the presidential delegations were asked to leave the leaders for a private talk, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry also held a conversation in the corridor, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Barack Obama are meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou.

A meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry on Syria ended without a deal as differences remain unresolved, a senior State Department official told Reuters.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye told her Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, that North Korea’s behavior this year has “seriously undermined peace in this region and posed a challenge to the development of the South Korea-China relations.”

She defended the decision to station the US THAAD anti-missile system as an "inevitable, self-defense" measure to counter threats stemming from Pyongyang.

"(I) hope that through earnest communication, our two countries can turn this challenge into an opportunity to further strengthen and move forward our bilateral relationship," Yonhap quote the South Korean leader as saying.