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Putin: US Position on Syria Became More Pragmatic

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POLITICS

18:42 08.07.2017(updated 18:53 08.07.2017)Get short URL

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2017 G20 Summit in Hamburg (92)

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Putin said it hard to say whether the US position on Syria changed or not after meeting with Trump, but it for sure become more pragmatic.

HAMBURG (Sputnik) — The position of the Untied States on Syria has become more pragmatic and the decision on the country's southern deescalation zone was made with US input, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday at the final press conference of the G20 summit in German city of Hamburg.

"As for Syria, we discussed this issue with all my interlocutors. Has the position of the United States changed or has not? I think it has become more pragmatic. Overall it has not changed, but there is understanding that by joining our efforts we can achieve many things," Putin said.

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Putin: Russia, Israel Reach 'Breakthrough' on De-escalation Zones in Southern Syria

"As a result, we have yesterday's agreement on deescalation zone in southern Syria. Regardless of the reaction of others, I could tell you that it is one of the breakthroughs, which we have managed to achieve, by the way, during the work with President [Donald] Trump. It is the result of joint work, including the United States," Putin added.

Earlier, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in a briefing said the first meeting between Trump and Putin revealed that a clear and positive chemistry and connection existed between the two leaders.

Trump and Putin agreed to enforce a new ceasefire across southern Syria that will come into effect within two days at noon Damascus time on Sunday.

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Putin: Assad's Future Should Be Decided by Syrian People Regardless of US Wishes

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POLITICS

18:21 08.07.2017(updated 19:02 08.07.2017)Get short URL

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2017 G20 Summit in Hamburg (92)

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It's up to the Syrian people to decide their future, Vladimir Putin said.

HAMBURG (Sputnik) — The future of Syrian President Bashar Assad should be determined by the Syrian people regardless of the wishes of the US administration, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday at the final press conference after the G20 summit in the German city of Hamburg.

"[US Secretary of State Rex] Mr. Tillerson is an honorable man, he was awarded with Russia's Order of Friendship. We respect him, but he is not a Syrian citizen. As of the future of Syria and future of President Assad as a political figure, the Syrian people should be one to determine it," Putin said, commenting on Tillerson's remarks concerning Assad, who according to the US state secretary, has no political future in Syria.

The civil war in Syria between the government and various opposition and terror groups has been ongoing since 2011. Moscow has repeatedly insisted that the legitimate authorities cannot be ousted by force and this issue should be settled by Syrian people. Washington, on the other hand, preferred a hardline approach toward Damascus demanding Assad to step down and supporting opposition factions. Both Russia and the United States have been conducting airstrikes on Syrian territory, although actions of the US-led coalition were not authorized by Syrian government.

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The Putin-Trump Meeting: A Ray of Hope for 'Concrete Solutions' on Syria

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WORLD

17:55 08.07.2017(updated 19:29 08.07.2017)Get short URL

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2017 G20 Summit in Hamburg (92)

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The results of the first-ever meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump inspire optimism and hope for clinching "concrete" agreements, prominent Italian political scientist Germano Dottori told Sputnik.

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The Meeting the World Waited For: What did Putin and Trump Manage to Agree Upon?

On July 7, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump held their first personal meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg. Negotiations lasted almost 2 hours and 20 minutes.

Speaking at a press conference after the talks, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the two leaders had managed to arrive at a consensus on a number of pressing issues, including Syria, Ukraine and cybersecurity.

In an interview with Sputnik, prominent Italian political scientist Germano Dottori said that it is clear that "Trump really wants to cooperate with Putin, but he will have to do it with great care."

The fact is that when the current resident of the White House prepares certain agreements, he is forced to resort to almost acrobatic somersaults, something that was in case in the run-up to the Putin-Trump meeting.

"First, Trump made a number of scathing statements regarding Russia. While on a visit to Poland, and then during the G20 summit, he actually opened the way for agreements, in particular, on the Syrian problem," Dottori said.

He drew attention to the statement of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who noted that both presidents are primarily driven by the national interests of their countries and see these interests as something that helps them clinch mutually beneficial agreements.

"This was clearly manifested, in particular, in the new agreements on Syria. Obviously, the parties have different interests, but they intend to cooperate and negotiate. Strictly speaking, this is exactly what we expected from Trump," Dottori pointed out. 

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Most Anticipated G20 Meeting Between Putin, Trump Reveals ‘Positive Chemistry’

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POLITICS

00:59 08.07.2017Get short URL

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The first ever and the most anticipated at G20 summit in Hamburg bilateral - between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin – revealed a "positive chemistry" between the two leaders and the desire to look into future instead of clinging to past difficulties, which they have in common.

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New US Sanctions Bill to Be ‘In Trouble’ After Trump-Putin Meeting - Think Tank

HAMBURG (Sputnik) — The two foreign ministers – Rex Tillerson and Sergey Lavrov – briefed journalists on the results of the meeting, which was initially intended to take 30 minutes, but lasted for over two hours, making Putin apologize to his next vis-a-vis Shinzo Abe and rush to the Elbphilharmonie for a gala concert.

Tillerson said that the meeting revealed "a very clear, positive chemistry" and connection between the two leaders, while Lavrov characterized the first bilateral as constructive.

All four main topics that the presidents addressed represent the bottlenecks in the current US-Russian elections. However, on each of them the leaders managed to see a way to move forward.

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The first topic that the two addressed was, predictably, Russia’s alleged meddling in the US presidential election 2016.

Trump raised his concerns regarding Moscow’s alleged interference, and Putin once again denied any involvement by Russia.

Tillerson said that Putin's denial was seen as a hindrance to moving the relationship between the United States and Russia forward, and the two presidents agreed to establish a new framework to deal with the challenges of cyber threats and understand each other better on it.

"It was agreed that all these issues … will be the subject of Russian-American interaction," Lavrov confirmed.