President Obama to address U.N. General Assembly

In his speech, Putin was expected to emphasise Russia’s efforts to resolve the Syrian civil war and combat the Islamic State extremist group, contrasting it with the US-led military campaign in Iraq and Syria.

Addressing the fight against ISIS, Obama said that “the march of human progress never marches in a straight line”, saying the US and other UN member nations must “avoid a 3rd world war”.

Later today, Putin and Obama are scheduled to meet in person for the first time in months, where they will surely discuss Syria.

The Russian leader took aim at the West’s refusal to cooperate with Assad’s forces to stamp out the Islamic State, which now controls huge swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq.

Obama and Putin’s disparate views of the grim situation in Syria left little indication of how the two countries might work together to end a conflict that has killed more than 250,000 people and resulted in a flood of refugees.

He has butchered his own people.

Despite calling for Assad to go in 2012, the Obama administration has been unsuccessful at brokering a political transition in Syria.

In his speech on Monday morning, Obama opened by calling for recognition of what the United Nations had achieved and by urging worldwide cooperation to solve problems. That coalition, he said, should include the Syrian government.

Mr Rouhani said he recently met Russian officials who told him that they wanted to enter the Syrian “scene” with a renewed determination to fight “Daesh (an Arabic acronym for IS) and terrorists“. It comes as Moscow has been ramping up its involvement in Syria in defense of Assad – ferrying weapons, troops and supplies to an airport near the Syrian coastal city of Latakia in what the USA sees as preparations for setting up an air base there. In remarks to throngs at an outdoor welcome ceremony last Wednesday, the pontiff voiced support for Obama policies on climate change, immigration and economic inequality – some of which have been blocked by Republican lawmakers.

Some U.S. Intelligence analysts believe the weapons could be used to attack rebel forces supported by the U.S.

“In my opinion, provision of military support to illegal structures runs counter to the principles of modern global law and the United Nations Charter”, Putin said.

Mr. Cameron – along with Mr. Obama and French President Francois Hollande – has previously demanded that Mr. Assad be removed from power as a condition of any peace deal, a position consistently rejected by Mr. Putin. Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and a pro-Russian armed insurgency continues in eastern Ukraine, with Kiev and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation accusing Moscow of backing and supplying it.

The Ukraine crisis has indeed driven U.S.-Russian relations to post-Cold War lows.