Divisions among world leaders on ending the war in Syria have been laid bare at the UN General Assembly (UNGA).
The
US and France insisted Syria's President Bashar al-Assad must go, but
Russia said it would be an "enormous mistake" not to work with him to
tackle Islamic State (IS) militants.
After meeting Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin said Russia might be willing to join air strikes against IS.
But, he said, the air strikes must be backed by the United Nations.
Mr Putin also ruled out Russian troops ever taking part in a ground operation in Syria.
The
two leaders met for 90 minutes on the sidelines of the UNGA in talks
that Mr Putin called "very constructive, business-like and frank".
It was their first face-to-face meeting in almost a year, with the Ukraine war also on the agenda.
In his speech to the UNGA, Mr Obama said compromise among powers
would be essential to ending the Syrian conflict, which has claimed
more than 200,000 lives and forced four million to flee abroad.
"Lasting stability can only take hold when the people of Syria forge an agreement to live together peacefully," he said.
"The
US is prepared to work with any nation, including Russia and Iran, to
resolve the conflict. But we must recognise that there cannot be, after
so much bloodshed, so much carnage, a return to the pre-war status quo."
Mr
Putin, who was not in the assembly hall for Mr Obama's speech, said it
was an "enormous mistake to refuse to co-operate with the Syrian
government and its armed forces who are valiantly fighting terrorism
face-to-face".
Media captionVladimir Putin: "We think it is an enormous mistake not to co-operate with Syria and its armed forces"
Image copyrightGetty ImagesImage caption
After trading barbs on Syria, the two men shook hands before heading to a face-to-face meeting
He also called for the creation of a "broad
anti-terror coalition" to fight IS, comparing it to the international
forces that fought against Nazi Germany in World War Two.
The US
and Russian leaders have long differed on Syria: the US opposes
President Bashar al-Assad remaining in power, while Russia has been a
staunch ally, and has recently stepped up military support.
Some
Western leaders have recently softened their stance towards the Syrian
president, conceding that he might be able to stay on during a political
transition.
UK Prime Minister David Cameron is expected to reflect that in talks this week.
Iran's
President Hassan Rouhani, a key Syrian ally, said his country was
prepared to help in "paving the way for democracy" in Syria.
But
French President Francois Hollande said that, while he was prepared to
work with Iran and Russia, he would explain to them that "the route to a
solution does not go through Bashar al-Assad". Image copyrightReuters
Syria's civil war
What's the human cost?
More
than 250,000 Syrians have been killed and one million injured in four
and a half years of armed conflict, which began with anti-government
protests before escalating into a full-scale civil war. And the survivors?
More
than 11 million others have been forced from their homes, four million
of them abroad, as forces loyal to President Assad and those opposed to
his rule battle each other - as well as jihadist militants from IS.
Growing numbers of refugees are going to Europe. How has the world reacted?
Regional
and world powers have also been drawn into the conflict. Iran and
Russia, along with Lebanon's Hezbollah movement, are propping up the
Alawite-led government. Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are backing the
Sunni-dominated opposition, along with the US, UK and France. Syria's civil war explained Diplomatic goals behind Putin's Syria build-up Migrant crisis: Fleeing life under Islamic State in Syria The battle for Syria and Iraq in maps
UN
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said five countries - Russia, the US,
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Iran - were key to finding a political solution
in Syria, but unless they could compromise, it would be "futile" to
expect change on the ground.
Moscow has suggested there are plans
to form an international contact group involving all the countries Mr
Ban mentioned plus Egypt.
The threat of IS extremists and the flow
of Syrian refugees to Europe has added urgency to the search for a deal
to end the civil war.
Observers also continue to report attacks on civilians by government forces.
The
UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that regime aircraft
fired missiles at a market in the eastern town of Mayadeen on Monday,
killing at least 23 people, including eight children. A US-led coalition has been carrying out air strikes against IS in Syria and Iraq for more than a year.
The
UK announced this month it had carried out a drone strike against two
British citizens in Syria, but has yet to fly manned operations in
Syrian airspace.
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