Putin looks down at the floor during an awkward first moment with Biden ahead of five hours of gruelling chat to help salvage relations between Moscow and Washington
* The two men arrived at the summit within a few minutes of each other: Putin, after a last-minute arrival by air and motorcade; Biden by driving from his nearby hotel, having arrived Tuesday
* Biden extended his hand first. Putin accepted, and the two proceeded to shake hands and smile for the cameras outside the Villa de La Grange before heading inside
* During a photo-op in the library, Biden grinned while photographers jostled to capture the historic meeting
* 'It's always better to meet face to face,' Biden said, flashing a big smile while sitting with his legs crossed
* The event was set up not to have public comments by either man, and Putin could be seen sitting back in his chair, tapping his hand against his wooden armrest looking bored while they waited
* Relations between the two sides are at their lowest ebb in decades after Putin's outlandish cyber attacks against the US, election interference, aggression towards Ukraine and intervention in the Middle East
* Washington has been seeking to lower expectations amid the fanfare and buildup, despite Russian goading
* Moscow staged naval drills 300 miles off Hawaii at the weekend - its largest Pacific drills since the Cold War
President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have begun their summit at a villa on Lake Geneva with a very awkward photo opportunity with stilted chat, minimal eye contact and with aides shooing the press away.
The two men arrived at the summit within a few minutes of each other: Putin, after a last-minute arrival by air and motorcade; Biden by driving from his nearby hotel, having arrived Tuesday.
Biden extended his hand first as the pair shook hands - a marked contrast to the elbow bumps at the G7 - and they smiled for the cameras outside the Villa de La Grange before heading inside.
Read more ....
More News On Today's Biden - Putin Summit
‘Two great powers’: Biden, Putin plunge into hours of talks -- AP
Wide gulf, slim hopes as Putin and Biden begin summit -- Reuters
High interest but low expectations as Biden, Putin talks kick off -- France 24
Biden-Putin summit: US and Russian leaders meet for tense Geneva talks -- BBC
Biden, Putin face off at long-awaited summit -- DW
Biden and Putin begin high-stakes diplomacy at Geneva summit -- CNBC
Russian Navy conducts massive drills in Pacific before Biden-Putin meeting: report -- FOX News
Putin hopes meeting with Biden will be productive -- TASS
