PHOTO: Obama And Putin Have Impromptu G20 Meeting

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President Obama and Russian President Putin had an informal meeting Sunday while in Turkey for the Group of 20 Summit, two days after Paris was shook by a string of violent attacks.

The meeting was closed to the press, but Pete Souza, the White House’s official photographer, posted a photo of the world leaders, flanked by National Security Adviser Susan Rice and a Russian aide, leaning into the discussion.

President Obama talks with President Vladimir Putin of Russia at the G20 Summit.

A photo posted by Pete Souza (@petesouza) on

Another angle on the meeting – captured by the Washington Post from video of the summit – shows how impromptu the face-to-face was, with the power circle seated in the corner of lounge room while aides make coffee.

The White House confirmed the talk lasted about 35 minutes, and said Obama and Putin agreed on the necessity for “a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political transition,” the Post reported. A Kremlin source said the meeting clocked in at 20 minutes and that the leaders did not agree on tactics.

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Notable Replies

  1. Obviously this meeting didn’t rise to the “stablemate” level of interaction Trump and Putin shared.

  2. Avatar for sherm sherm says:

    Photoshop Donald Trump’s face over Obama’s and know the true meaning of horror.

  3. Avatar for schmed schmed says:

    Absolutely. Real diplomacy only happens in a green room.

  4. I keep imagining, one after another, the clown-car list of faces of those R’s running in 2016 sitting where Obama is and want to cry.

  5. As long as Putin supports Assad, little will change or improve.

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