Obama, Putin say Syria violence must end, no plan agreed

US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed that the violence in Syria has to end but they offered no new solutions and showed no signs of reaching a deal on tougher sanctions against Damascus.

With the bloodshed in Syria getting worse and after a week of Cold War-style recriminations between US and Russian diplomats, the talks at a Group of 20 summit in Mexico tested whether Obama and Putin could forge a working relationship and find common ground.

"We agreed that we need to see a cessation of the violence, that a political process has to be created to prevent civil war," Obama told reporters after the talks that went on for some two hours - longer than originally planned.

"From my point of view, we have found many common points on this issue (of Syria)," Putin said, adding the two sides would continue discussions.

The demeanor of both leaders was cool and detached as they avoided any explicit comment on the differences that divide them, or solutions to end the chaos in Syria.

It was a personal dynamic that contrasted sharply with the chumminess that Putin and Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush - dubbed "The George and Vladimir Show" by the media - used to show in their meetings.

With Syrian President Bashar al-Assad continuing his bloody, 15-month crackdown on the opposition, Obama and Western allies want Moscow to stop using its veto to shield him from further UN Security Council sanctions aimed at forcing him from power.

Putin, a former KGB spymaster, is suspicious of U.S. motives, especially after the NATO-assisted ouster of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi last year, and he has offered little sign of softening his stance on Syria.

Though Washington has shown no appetite for a new Libya-style intervention, Russia is reluctant to abandon its Syrian ally, a longtime arms customer, and risk losing its last firm foothold in the Middle East, including access to a warm-water navy base.

Suspension of the UN monitoring mission in Syria over the weekend put added pressure on Obama and Putin, meeting for the first time since the Russian president's re-election, to act decisively to keep the conflict from spiraling into civil war.

The two men, at least in their public remarks, brushed past broad differences over issues such as arming Syria, UN sanctions and Assad's future.

As journalists entered the cramped hotel ballroom, the two leaders were leaning toward each other in discussion, neither smiling. Obama initiated a handshake for the cameras while the two remained seated.