Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Barack Obama held a meeting on the sidelines of the Paris climate conference that lasted for around 30 minutes, TASS reports.

The meeting, which was held behind the closed doors, had not been planned or discussed beforehand. The presidents used the opportunity of attending the international conference to speak about topical issues in the bilateral format. The two leaders also discussed the situation in Syria and Ukraine.

Putin said after the talks there is understanding between him and US President Barack Obama on future political settlement in Syria.

“In general, I think, there is understanding in what direction we should move [on Syria],” Putin told journalists after his visit to Paris. “If we are talking about the necessity of political settlement, then the new constitution is needed [in Syria], along with new election and monitoring the results,” the Russian president noted.

According to Putin, the world leaders generally hold similar views on the Syrian settlement.