MOSCOW, June 19 (Itar-Tass) — Russian President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. President Barack Obama in Mexico on Monday, ahead of the G-20 summit. The heads of states discussed a missile defense treaty, Russia's ascension to the World Trade Organization, the possible annulment by the US Congress of the Jackson-Vanik amendment and the situation in Iran. The presidents adopted a joint statement which analysts said shows the rapprochement of Russian and US positions on a number of foreign policy issues.
Some issues required urgent clarification by the time of the Los Cabos talk, the Rossiiskaya Gazeta writes. The Kremlin reacted sharply to the Magnitsky bill, now under review at the U.S. Congress, which gives the opportunity to the U.S. authorities to freeze the assets of the Russian officials suspected of human rights violations, and introduce visa sanctions against them. The U.S. Congress committee on foreign affairs planned to vote on the bill on Tuesday.
The presidents' talk lasted unusually long for talks for such a format: the Putin-Obama meeting lasted two hours, the government newspaper noted. By mutual acknowledgement, the dialogue was substantive, but it did not bring any sensations, while the general diplomatic remarks by the heads of the state hinted that no breakthroughs had been reached.
Vladimir Putin was terse in his statements. He thanked the USA for its support of Russia's joining the WTO. "I'm sure it will contribute to the development of economic relations between our countries," the Russian leader stated.
On missile defense, the parties agreed to work on disputed issues. On Iran, they found a common approach. There is still "time and space to resolve diplomatically" concerns about nuclear weapons, Obama noted.
After the talks in Mexico, the leaders of the two countries adopted a joint statement, " the Komsomolskaya Pravda noted. It addresses such issues and Russian-US trade and economic cooperation, including Russia's joining the WTO, the problem of non-proliferation and regional problems such as the North Korean nuclear program, and the situation around Iran and in the Middle East, including in Syria.
The six-page document underscores the intention to continue the fight against drug-trafficking, cross-border crime and other modern challenges.
The joint statement indicates the rapprochement of Russian and U.S. positions on a number of foreign policy issues, the Moscow Post writes. The Russian and U.S. leaders called for giving the opportunity to the Syrian people to choose the way of their further development. Speaking about the Iranian problem, the leaders of the two counters demanded that Tehran fully meet its commitments to the UN Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The newspaper believes that Obama has made a number of serious concessions to Putin. In the field of trade, Obama confirmed that his administration was working closely with the U.S. Congress towards the soonest cancellation of the Jackson-Vanik amendment.
In general, the Putin-Obama meeting was quite productive, the newspaper believes. As a result, political analysts are beginning to talk about a new stage of reset in Russia-U.S. relations.