Putin, Merkel hold talks on Syria, Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed German Chancellor Angela Merkel to his Black Sea residence on Tuesday for talks focusing on the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.

Germany and Russia are at odds over both conflicts, but Putin has appeared eager to improve ties. Merkel’s one-day trip to Sochi is her first visit to Russia in two years.

Putin said: “We must use this opportunity to talk about our relations and about more problematic issues, such as Ukraine and Syria and perhaps some other regions.”

A peace deal brokered by Germany and France in 2015 has helped reduce the scale of the fighting, but violence has continued and attempts to reach a political settlement have failed.

Tuesday’s meet comes amid tensions over Germany’s support for EU sanctions imposed on Russia because of its annexation of Crimea and support for the separatists in Ukraine.

On Syria, Germany has been critical of Russia’s support for President Bashar al-Assad.

The two leaders have scaled back links as Moscow’s ties with the EU plunged to a post-Cold War low over the crisis in Ukraine. Berlin has said the meeting will “above all” focus on the upcoming G20 summit. Putin said allegations that Russia meddled in last year’s US elections were based on rumours and Moscow did not want foreign powers to interfere in Russian politics. He was speaking at a joint news conference with Merkel and responding to a question about allegations that Russia might meddle in German elections on September 24.

“We never interfere in the political life and processes of other countries and we don’t want anybody interfering in our political life and foreign policy processes,” said Putin. US President Donald Trump and Putin will speak by phone on Tuesday, their first known conversation since the US missile strikes on a Syrian air base that sparked new tensions between Washington and Moscow.

The White House said Syria’s six-year conflict is expected to be among the agenda items.