Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Geneva on Wednesday ahead of a summit with US President Joe Biden, Reuters TV footage showed, with the stage set for a tense first meeting between the two leaders since Biden took office in January.
Both sides have played down the prospect of any major breakthroughs at the summit, with wide disagreements likely, but have said they hope their talks in a stately lakeside Genevavilla can lead to more stable and predictable relations.
“We’re not expecting a big set of deliverables out of this meeting,” a senior US official told reporters aboard Air Force One as Biden flew to Geneva, saying the two are expected to talk for four or five hours starting at around 1.30 pm.
“I’m not sure that any agreements will be reached,” said Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov.
Relations have deteriorated for years, notably with Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, its 2015 intervention in Syria and US charges, denied by Moscow, of its meddling in the 2016 election that brought Donald Trump to the White House.
They sank further in March when Biden said he thought Putin was a “killer”, prompting Russia to recall its ambassador to Washington for consultations.
The United States recalled its ambassador in April.
The senior US official said the United States was looking “areas where working together can advance our national interests and make the world safer.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said whether or not to send back ambassadors would be decided by the two presidents.
“Today the presidents will need to determine how to proceed with the heads of the diplomatic missions,” Peskov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
While the issues may be vexing, the surroundings will be serene when the presidents meet in Villa La Grange, an elegant mansion set in a 30-hectare park overlooking Lake Geneva.
