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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Syria crisis: Russia and US 'no closer' | Syria crisis: Russia and US 'no closer' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The US and Russia have not bridged their differences over the issue of possible military action in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin says. | The US and Russia have not bridged their differences over the issue of possible military action in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin says. |
| Mr Putin said military intervention would destabilise the Middle East and would be "counter-productive". | |
| His comments came in a news conference on the final day of the G20 summit in St Petersburg. | His comments came in a news conference on the final day of the G20 summit in St Petersburg. |
| US President Barack Obama had been pushing for support among leaders at the G20 for a US strike on Syria. | US President Barack Obama had been pushing for support among leaders at the G20 for a US strike on Syria. |
| The US government accuses President Bashar al-Assad's forces of killing 1,429 people in a poison-gas attack in the Damascus suburbs on 21 August. | The US government accuses President Bashar al-Assad's forces of killing 1,429 people in a poison-gas attack in the Damascus suburbs on 21 August. |
| Mr Assad has blamed rebels for the attack. China and Russia, which have refused to agree to a UN Security Council resolution against Syria, insist any action without the UN would be illegal. | Mr Assad has blamed rebels for the attack. China and Russia, which have refused to agree to a UN Security Council resolution against Syria, insist any action without the UN would be illegal. |
| Mr Putin said the discussions about Syria on Thursday evening had gone on well past midnight. | Mr Putin said the discussions about Syria on Thursday evening had gone on well past midnight. |
| He added that he had a one-to-one meeting with Mr Obama in which they had discussed Syria. | He added that he had a one-to-one meeting with Mr Obama in which they had discussed Syria. |
| Both men had listened to the other's position but had not agreed, he said. | Both men had listened to the other's position but had not agreed, he said. |
| Divisions persist | |
| Also speaking at the end of the summit, Mr Obama said there was a "unanimous" view that chemical weapons had been used in Syria. | Also speaking at the end of the summit, Mr Obama said there was a "unanimous" view that chemical weapons had been used in Syria. |
| He also said most leaders present at the summit thought it was most likely that the regime of Mr Assad was responsible. | |
| Mr Obama argued action was required even when the Security Council was paralysed, as the international consensus against the use of chemical weapons had to be upheld. | |
| However, Mr Putin described the use of chemical weapons as "a provocation on the part of the militants who are expecting to get support from outside". | However, Mr Putin described the use of chemical weapons as "a provocation on the part of the militants who are expecting to get support from outside". |
| British Prime Minister David Cameron said only responding to the crisis through the UN Security Council would mean the UK "contracting out its morality and foreign policy to the potential of a Russian veto". | |
| While the UK, Canada and Turkey all support Mr Obama's call for action, the only leaders at the G20 meeting to commit to force in Syria are the US and France. | |
| Correspondents in St Petersburg say opponents of US military intervention appear to far outnumber supporters within the G20. | |
| In his comments to reporters on Friday, Mr Obama did not make clear what he would do if the US Congress decided against military action in a vote expected next week. | |
| Also on Friday, the UN appealed for more aid for people in Syria, and also for the estimated two million Syrians who have fled their country. | |
| UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos told the BBC that donor countries should "look again" at their contributions and be "as generous as they can". | |
| Mr Cameron announced on Friday that some countries at the G20 had agreed measures to speed up the delivery of aid, including lifting bureaucratic obstacles such as custom rules. | |
| He said earlier that the UK would give an additional £52m ($80m) in aid for Syria - much of it for medical training and equipment to help civilians targeted by chemical attacks. |