U.S. President Barack Obama (R) and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have previously been at odds over how to resolve the crisis in Syria. (Reuters)
By AL ARABIYA WITH AGENCIES
U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin urged on Monday an immediate end to violence in Syria.
But there was little sign they had agreed a way to end the conflict which international monitors say has now cost more than 14,400 lives.
In a joint statement following their first meeting since Putin returned to the presidency, they said they shared a belief that Syrians should determine their own future.
The two countries have been at odds over how to resolve the crisis. The statement by both powers was made as Russia reportedly prepared to send two warships with marines to its naval base in Syria where U.N. monitors have suspended their patrols because of escalating violence.
“In order to stop the bloodshed in Syria, we call for an immediate cessation of all violence,” the two leaders said in a statement after meeting on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Los Cabos, Mexico.
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