Russia-US summit important for resolving Syrian issue, says envoy

MOSCOW, July 19. /TASS/. Monday’s Helsinki meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump is important for advancing efforts to resolve the Syria issue, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Geneva Office and Other Geneva-based International Organizations Gennady Gatilov told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of Russian ambassadors held at the Foreign Ministry. "I believe that the very fact of the summit will positively affect efforts to resolve the Syrian conflict because it was one of the key issues discussed at the talks," he said. "It is possible to find common ground on a number of problems related to the Syria issue," the ambassador added. "By the way, [United Nations Special Envoy for Syria] Mr. de Mistura also had expectations from this meeting because the UN believes that agreements between Russia and the US on Syria will positively influence the process of resolving the crisis," Gatilov added. Putin-Trump meeting The first full-fledged talks between the presidents of Russia and the United States took place in Finland’s capital of Helsinki on July 16. The one-on-one meeting between Putin and Trump lasted more than two hours, while delegation members later joined the presidents for a working lunch. The Russian delegation was composed of Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov and Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov. The US delegation included Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton. The expanded session also took about two hours. The talks discussed pressing bilateral and global issues. Both presidents said after the summit that a big step forward had been taken. Read more