Conversation with Obama was surprisingly very frank - President Putin

UNITED NATIONS, September 29. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the meeting with the United States president Barack Obama was frank and showed that the two sides can work together on common problems. "Today's discussion, as I have already said, was very meaningful, formal and surprisingly very frank," the Russian leader told reporters. "We found a lot in common, but there are differences," Putin said, adding that these differences are well known. "Meeting [President Obama - TASS] has been very helpful. And what is especially nice - it was very frank," Putin told reporters. Returning later to the question once again, he stressed that the conversation was "surprisingly very frank", as well as eventful and useful. "It seems to me that the American partners have stated their position on many issues quite clearly, including the situation in Ukraine and the Syrian issues, and in the Middle East in general. We have, oddly enough, many common points and views," the Russian leader said. "But, of course, there are differences," Putin said, adding that these differences are well known. "But in my opinion it is necessary to have the opportunity to work together on common problems," Putin concluded. Answering the questions about the initiator of the meeting, Putin said that it was the American side that proposed meeting with the President of the United States Barack Obama. "The American partners have proposed this meeting, and as my aide [presidential aide Yuri Ushakov - TASS] has already said, also proposed two time options. We chose one of them," Putin said, answering the question about the initiator of the talks. According to him it happened "the other day, very recently." At the same time, Putin did not agree with the statement that he did not have any contact with his American counterpart for a long time. "It is not true. We talked - on the phone, on international events, but still we were discussing the key issues of bilateral relations and of the international agenda," the Russian President said. According to him, the lack of such meetings "for the camera" does not mean that there was no contact at all. "Contact was not interrupted at all, in this regard there cannot be any concerns and speculations," Putin concluded. At the same time Putin said that relations between Russia and the United States, unfortunately, are at a low level, but not through the fault of Moscow - it is the choice of the United States; Russia is ready to restore the connection. "We are always ready to develop relations, to restore it in full," president Putin told journalists. He added that there are differences, but nevertheless Putin and Obama agreed to work together on it. The press also asked the President to explain the meaning of pictures from the official lunch on behalf of UN Secretary-General, in which Putin and Obama depicted with raised glasses and place Ban Ki-moon between them is empty. "You surprise me," Putin admitted. "Right out of something like this, all of sudden you want to make something. But there is nothing here, there’s nothing behind it, it is a protocol event," Putin said. "We raised our glasses to the toast of the Secretary-General and he was on the tribune. And the President of the United States, being polite, raised his glass and we had clinked glasses for the health of the Secretary-General and the development of the United Nations," Putin said. The meeting between the Russian President Vladimir Putin and the President of the United States Barack Obama at the UN headquarters lasted more than 100 minutes versus the initially planned 55 minutes. This was the first full-fledged conversation between the two Presidents since June 2013. While opening it, Putin and Obama exchanged a handshake and did not say a word to each other in the presence of reporters. Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov said earlier there was a possibility that the Russian and American delegations would inform reporters on the results of the conversation later. Earlier on Monday, Obama and Putin made speeches at the 70th jubilee session of the UN General Assembly. Read more