Obama, Putin, agree to continue seeking deal on Syria

In China, Erdogan said he told all world leaders at the Antalya summit previous year that “in Syria a safe zone could be set up. and we could solve the refugee crisis”.

At the press conference Monday, Obama also addressed concerns about cybersecurity, acknowledging that the US has “had problems with cyber intrusions” from Russian Federation and other countries.

“We can say that our mutual work with the USA in fighting terrorist organisations, including in Syria, will be significantly improved and intensified”.

The two North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies have reached an uneasy agreement under which YPG fighters are meant to remain east of the Euphrates river, just outside Turkey’s proposed buffer zone, although Ankara has said it has yet to verify that they are doing so.

President Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, which hosts 3 million Syrian refugees, said he had reiterated to Obama and Putin at the G-20 talks in China the need for a “no-fly zone” over Syria and a “safe zone” where there would be no fighting, in hopes of stemming the human migration.

Obama also spent about 90 minutes Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, another leader whose fate seems intertwined with Obama’s in all the wrong ways.

Russian forces have aligned with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to target US-backed opposition fighters that Moscow and Damascus claim are terrorists. -Russian militarily partnership against extremist groups operating in Syria. In recent days, the State Department has said it only wants a nationwide cease-fire between Assad’s military and the rebels, and not another “cessation of hostilities” that is time-limited and only stops fighting in some cities and regions. The remarks come after Russian president Vladimir Putin denied having any involvement with the hack of the Democratic National Committee’s emails earlier this summer.

Mr Putin has denied his government was involved, but cheered the release of the information.

The current President of Russian Federation was not onboard, as he was attending the G20 Summit in China.

Obama said he and Putin also discussed the security situation in Ukraine and disputes over cyberespionage. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov insists there needs to be a clearer distinction between legitimate opposition groups and militants: “I don’t see any possibility of assuring a really durable, full-fledged ceasefire without the separation of healthy opposition forces from terrorists”. Upon Obama’s arrival, social media exploded with speculation China had slighted Obama after there was no staircase awaiting him on the tarmac, forcing the president to deplane through a set of internal stairs he rarely uses.

“At the Antalya summit, we persistently told all leaders that we could solve the migrant crisis by setting up a safe zone. now at this summit too, we have brought up this issue with all our friends”, Erdogan said on Monday.

A kerfuffle over aircraft stairs – or lack of them – and overzealous Chinese apparatchiks drowned out Obama’s efforts to laud his “pivot” to Asia and a deal between Beijing and Washington to jointly ratify a major climate accord.

On the eve of a planned meeting with Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippine President’s description of Obama as a “son of a whore” forced the USA president to call their appointment into question.