Obama to ask Putin for clarity on Russian involvement in Syria

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday afternoon at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, White House officials said on Thursday.

Obama will seek to understand how the Russian government plans to counter Islamic State by increasing its military presence in Syria, said Celeste Wallander, the White House National Security Council's senior director for Russia.

"There's a lot of talk and now it's time for clarity and for Russia to come clean and come clear on just exactly how it proposes to be a constructive contributor to what is already an ongoing multi-nation coalition," Wallander told reporters ahead the annual session of the United Nations General Assembly, which Obama will join Sunday through Tuesday.

Obama will press Putin to live up to commitments Russia made in February to pull its military out of Ukraine by the end of the year, Wallander said.

Obama will also have the opportunity to talk to Cuban President Raul Castro at some point during the meeting, the White House said.

(Reporting by Julia Edwards and Roberta Rampton; Editing by Sandra Maler)

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