‘Practical work’ summit for Biden, Putin: No punches or hugs

(AP) President Joe Biden and Russia’s Vladimir Putin have exchanged cordial words and plotted out modest next steps on arms control and diplomacy. But the two leaders emerged from their much-anticipated Swiss summit Wednesday largely where they started — with deep differences on human rights, cyberattacks, election interference and more.

They did reach an important, but hardly relationship-changing agreement to return their chief diplomats to Moscow and Washington after each was called home as the relationship deteriorated in recent months.

Biden and Putin also agreed to start working on a plan to fortify their countries’ last remaining treaty limiting nuclear weapons.