Obama, Putin talk Ukraine, Syria and Iran at Beijing summit

President Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin came face to face Tuesday while in Beijing, and the duo — known to have, at best, a frosty relationship — discussed a number of international crises during several conversations throughout the day.

The White House confirmed that Mr. Obama and the Russian president spoke on three separate occasions Tuesday for a total of about 15 or 20 minutes.

“President Obama had an opportunity to speak with President Putin. Their conversations covered Iran, Syria and Ukraine,” said Bernadette Meehan, spokeswoman for the White House’s National Security Council. The statement offered no further detail.

One of the brief conversations came just before world leaders attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing gathered for a family photo.

Mr. Obama and Mr. Putin trailed behind the rest of the group and entered the room talking through an interpreter before taking their spots on either side of Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to reporters traveling with the president.

Both men also took part in a tree-planting ceremony Tuesday.

The relationship between Washington and Moscow, despite a so-called “reset” in the early days of the Obama administration, soured following Russia’s actions in Ukraine, which have included military incursions and the support of pro-Russian separatists wreaking havoc in eastern regions of the country.

The U.S. and its European allies responded with a series of sanctions against Moscow, which the White House argues have been effective, though they also have led to a further deterioration of relations between Mr. Obama and Mr. Putin.

Tuesday’s encounter was the first time the two men have seen each other since the U.S. began its bombing campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria in August.

Mr. Obama and Mr. Putin seem to share a common enemy in the Islamic State, which personally threatened the Russian leader two months ago.