Obama and Putin set for U.N. showdown, but differ on talks’ agenda

President Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet in New York next week at a time of high tension in Europe and the Middle East, but the Kremlin and the White House disagreed on Thursday about the top priority for the talks. The White House insisted that the meeting would focus on eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed forces are fighting the Kiev government, prompting tough sanctions that have damaged Russia’s economy. Moscow, however, said that the main focus would be on Syria, where Russia has built up its military forces in recent weeks with combat aircraft, tanks and other equipment in support of President Bashar al-Assad.

Of course, the primary topic will be Syria.

Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov

Politics Putin Obama