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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Trump Russia meeting: Sergei Lavrov praises Trump and Tillerson after talks | Trump Russia meeting: Sergei Lavrov praises Trump and Tillerson after talks |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Russian and the US are looking to "remove all the barriers" to having a better relationship, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said. | Russian and the US are looking to "remove all the barriers" to having a better relationship, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said. |
| He said he thought Moscow's relations with the current administration would be better than with the previous one. | He said he thought Moscow's relations with the current administration would be better than with the previous one. |
| Mr Lavrov was speaking after talks in Washington with President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. | Mr Lavrov was speaking after talks in Washington with President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. |
| The meetings came a day after the US president fired FBI director James Comey. | The meetings came a day after the US president fired FBI director James Comey. |
| Mr Comey was leading an investigation into alleged Russian interference in last year's US election. | Mr Comey was leading an investigation into alleged Russian interference in last year's US election. |
| Clearly impatient with journalists' repeated questions about Mr Comey, Mr Lavrov rejected claims that Moscow had intervened in the presidential election as "fabrications". | Clearly impatient with journalists' repeated questions about Mr Comey, Mr Lavrov rejected claims that Moscow had intervened in the presidential election as "fabrications". |
| A key topic of conversation at the meetings was the war in Syria, in particular a Russian plan to create "safe zones". Mr Lavrov praised the talks with Mr Trump and Mr Tillerson as "constructive". | A key topic of conversation at the meetings was the war in Syria, in particular a Russian plan to create "safe zones". Mr Lavrov praised the talks with Mr Trump and Mr Tillerson as "constructive". |
| The US administration has broadly welcomed the Russian plan, but has expressed wariness about Moscow's support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and the role of Iran - and Iranian proxy forces - in the country. | The US administration has broadly welcomed the Russian plan, but has expressed wariness about Moscow's support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and the role of Iran - and Iranian proxy forces - in the country. |
| US officials say they need to hear more about who would patrol the proposed zones, and how they would be enforced. | US officials say they need to hear more about who would patrol the proposed zones, and how they would be enforced. |
| Oval Office honour | Oval Office honour |
| Mr Lavrov told journalists: "I would say that our dialogue as of now is free from ideology that was very typical for [Barack] Obama's administration. | Mr Lavrov told journalists: "I would say that our dialogue as of now is free from ideology that was very typical for [Barack] Obama's administration. |
| "Both Mr Trump and the secretary of state of his administration, as I realised today once again, are businesslike people and they want to reach agreements. | "Both Mr Trump and the secretary of state of his administration, as I realised today once again, are businesslike people and they want to reach agreements. |
| "The goal of both President Trump and [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin is to have concrete results which will be tangible and which will allow us to alleviate problems, including on the international agenda." | "The goal of both President Trump and [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin is to have concrete results which will be tangible and which will allow us to alleviate problems, including on the international agenda." |
| Mr Lavrov met Mr Trump in the Oval Office, the president's inner sanctum in the White House - a rare invite for a non-leader of a foreign country. | Mr Lavrov met Mr Trump in the Oval Office, the president's inner sanctum in the White House - a rare invite for a non-leader of a foreign country. |
| US media were kept out of the room, with Russian state photographers providing the only public images of the event. | |
| Mr Trump later told US reporters he had had a "very, very good meeting" with Mr Lavrov, with progress made on the issue of Syria. | |
| "We're going to stop the killing and the death," he added. | "We're going to stop the killing and the death," he added. |
| Earlier, when Mr Lavrov arrived at the State Department to meet Mr Tillerson, he made a joke about Mr Comey's firing amid shouted questions from reporters. | Earlier, when Mr Lavrov arrived at the State Department to meet Mr Tillerson, he made a joke about Mr Comey's firing amid shouted questions from reporters. |
| "Was he fired?... You're kidding, you're kidding!" he said. | "Was he fired?... You're kidding, you're kidding!" he said. |