MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in Moscow on Wednesday as the two countries traded sharp accusations about a chemical weapons attack in Syria.
Tillerson, making the first visit by a Trump Cabinet official, went to the Kremlin in the early evening to meet with the Russian leader, the U.S. Embassy and the Kremlin said. Though President Donald Trump has spoken with Putin by phone, the meeting was believed to be the first between Putin and a top member of Trump’s administration since the new American president took office in January.
The agenda for the meeting wasn’t announced. The two leaders were expected to discuss disagreement about whether Syrian President Bashar Assad or his opposition was responsible for a chemical weapons attack last week that led to U.S. retaliatory cruise missiles. Conflicts over Russia’s actions in Ukraine and Russia’s alleged interference in the U.S. presidential campaign were also likely topics.
The meeting was steeped in geopolitical intrigue, with neither country saying ahead of time if it would take place or not.