Trump's decision also comes as his former lawyer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty on Thursday to lying to Congress about a proposed Trump real estate project in Russia.

Refugees watching the riots from the relative safety of a falafel joint said the rioters were insane for destroying their tolerant adoptive city.

Putin said his talks with Trump offered a model for rebuilding Russia-U.S. ties, which have plummeted to post-Cold War lows over Ukraine, Syria and other disputes.

Every facial expression and physical gesture will be analyzed as much as any words the two leaders utter as the world tries to read how well Trump gets along with Putin, a former spy.

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will sit down in Hamburg, Germany, on the sidelines of a Group of 20 summit.