US president Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin engaged in a \u201cvery robust exchange\u201d over claims Moscow meddled in America\u2019s elections, during their first face-to-face talks Friday at a fractious G20 summit marred by violent street protests.<\/p>\n
From the outset of the blockbuster encounter, the US property tycoon fired the key question that has weighed on his presidency, pressing the ex-KGB agent \u201con more than one occasion\u201d on the vote interference claims, said secretary of state Rex Tillerson, who was in the meeting.<\/p>\n
But Tillerson\u2019s counterpart Sergei Lavrov quickly added that Trump \u201caccepted\u201d Putin\u2019s denial of Moscow\u2019s role in propelling him to the White House, after hearing the Russian out.<\/p>\n
Over the course of two hours and 15 minutes of talks that covered not only the damaging claims but also a slew of global crises including the Syrian war, the two leaders clearly engaged, said Tillerson.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet me characterise: the meeting was very constructive, the two leaders I would say, connected very quickly,\u201d said Tillerson, adding \u201cthere was a very clear positive chemistry between the two\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are so many issues on the table… Just about everything got touched upon… Neither one of them wanted to stop,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe they even sent in the (US) First Lady at one point to see if she could get us out of there, but that didn\u2019t work either… We did another hour. Clearly she failed!\u201d<\/p>\n
Growing rift –<\/p>\n
On the presidential election campaign trail last year, Trump said he hoped relations with Putin could be rebuilt after Russia\u2019s acrimonious ties with his predecessor Barack Obama.<\/p>\n
But the billionaire had faced increasing pressure to take a tough line on Russia after allegations it interfered in the vote.<\/p>\n
In the talks on the sidelines of the G20 summit, Trump pressed Putin on the issue, \u201cand then… felt like at this point, let\u2019s talk about how do we go forward,\u201d said Tillerson.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that was the right place to spend our time, rather than spending a lot of time having a disagreement that everybody knows we have a disagreement,\u201d added the secretary of state.<\/p>\n
But Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer ripped into Tillerson over the case.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor Secretary Tillerson to say that this issue will remain unresolved is disgraceful-to give equal credence to the findings of the American intelligence community and the assertion by Mr. Putin is a grave dereliction of duty and will only encourage Russia to further interfere in our elections in the future,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n
Climate deal \u2018irreversible\u2019 –
\nFriday\u2019s encounter could have an impact on issues ranging from the North Korean crisis and conflicts in Syria and Ukraine to US-Russian disarmament treaties, world trade and global warming, analysts say.<\/p>\n
How the \u201ccontrasting styles of machismo interact… will likely be the defining feature of their relationship,\u201d noted Derek Chollet from think-tank German Marshall Fund.<\/p>\n
But if Trump and Putin have established a rapport, the distance between the US leader and America\u2019s long-standing allies have appeared to widen with his climate-skeptic opinions and \u201cAmerica First\u201d policy.<\/p>\n
The growing rift has turned this year\u2019s G20 summit-normally a ripple-free event in the diplomatic calendar-into one of the stormiest in the forum\u2019s history.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not going to paper over the differences but rather, we will call discord discord,\u201d said German Chancellor Angela Merkel.<\/p>\n
A draft communiqu\u00e9 seen by AFP Friday appeared to reflect the 19-versus-one stance on climate.<\/p>\n
The draft underlines that the 2015 Paris climate accord is \u201cirreversible\u201d and affirms that other G20 nations are committed to the deal while taking note of Washington\u2019s decision to quit the agreement.<\/p>\n
Not given up hope –
\nMeanwhile, North Korea\u2019s successful test of an intercontinental ballistic missile this week also casts a dark shadow over the US leader\u2019s first G20 summit.<\/p>\n
Trump had warned Thursday that Pyongyang\u2019s military sabre-rattling would bear \u201cconsequences\u201d, saying he was considering a \u201csevere\u201d response to its \u201cvery, very bad behaviour\u201d.<\/p>\n
After repeatedly urging Beijing to ratchet up the economic pressure on North Korea, Trump will hold what promises to be a testy meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the G20\u2019s sidelines on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Tillerson said the US will continue to press China to do more to rein in Pyongyang.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur engagement is unchanged with China and our expectations are unchanged. We have not given up hope,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Unacceptable violence –
\nMeanwhile, outside the heavily guarded G20 conference hall, protesters wreaked havoc, engaging in running battles with police in the all day as the rattle of helicopters was heard overhead.<\/p>\n
The activists blocked US first lady Melania Trump at her residence for hours as they torched cars, smashed shop windows, fired flares at police helicopters and even slashed tyres on vehicles belonging to the Canadian delegation.<\/p>\n
The violence forced Hamburg police to call in reinforcements from other German states, and G20 organisers to drastically curtail an official programme for spouses of visiting dignitaries.<\/p>\n
G20 host Merkel condemned the violence, saying she could understand peaceful protests, but demonstrations that \u201cput peoples\u2019 lives in danger, put the protesters\u2019 own lives in danger… are unacceptable\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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