Russia Update: Kremlin Announces Putin to Meet with Obama

Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov has confirmed that President Vladimir Putin will meet with President Barack Obama on Monday, September 28, Interfax reports.

The meeting will take place on the margins of the UN General Assembly and is scheduled after Putin’s meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

“At least, these are the meetings which have been put in the schedule and agreed upon,” Peskov added.

Yesterday Peskov said he could not confirm the meeting although sources in the White House cited by the New York Times said they expected the meeting to take place.

There has not yet been a formal US announcement and US news media stories are sourced in Peskov’s statement.

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The Kremlin has said that Putin will speak about Syria, and not Ukraine. Meanwhile, a US administration official said:

“If
we had an opportunity to speak to the Russians, our focus would be
reiterating the messages we and our European partners have hammered home
on Ukraine,” said one administration official. “Ukraine would be our
focus.”

Obama cancelled a planned summit with Putin in 2013 after
Russia gave asylum to fugitive NSA contractor Edward Snowden. He
continued to refrain from a personal meeting when the US placed
sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine. The two leaders have only
met in passing at world meetings, although they have spoken on the
telephone.

Ukrainian and Russian emigres are planning a protest rally at the United Nations on Monday.

— Catherine A. Fitzpatrick