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Washington and its allies have threatened to slap a fourth set of UN sanctions on Iran if it does not demonstrate its willingness to engage in negotiations on its controversial nuclear program -- despite the objections of veto-wielding Security Council members Russia and China.
As world leaders converge on New York for the annual UN general assembly, Obama was scheduled to kick off a flurry of high-profile bilateral encounters by meeting Chinese President Hu Jintao on Tuesday.
They will look to resolve a simmering trade row ahead of the G20 summit of leading economies in Pittsburgh later in the week, and Obama's first presidential visit to China in November.
US officials last week slapped punitive tariffs of an additional 35 percent on Chinese-made tire imports, prompting Beijing to lodge a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO).
With such a significant chunk of the world economy relying on the symbiotic US-China relationship, other world leaders will be hoping Hu and Obama can make peace.
The pair are also likely to discuss policy toward North Korea, whose leader on Friday reportedly told a Chinese envoy that the country was willing to engage in bilateral and multilateral talks on Pyongyang's controversial nuclear program.
Obama meets Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday, looking to build on the positive response that greeted his revamped plans for missile defense in Europe after his administration determined that Iran's short- and medium-range missiles presented a more imminent threat.
Russia had condemned a scheme to install an anti-missile radar in the Czech Republic and missile interceptors in Poland drawn up by Obama's predecessor George W. Bush that focused on Iran's development of intercontinental ballistic missile capabilities.
Russia's defense ministry confirmed Saturday it had scrapped plans to site missiles on the European Union's border after Obama's announcement.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin hailed Obama's "brave" decision, but said it should be followed by other US measures: to lift Soviet-era restrictions on the export of sensitive technology to Russia and to help its WTO membership bid.
Obama is also poised to meet with Japan's Yukio Hatoyama on Wednesday, two weeks after the new prime minister ended more than half a century of almost unbroken rule by the conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
The coalition government is seeking to strike a balance between the demands of some of its own left-leaning and pacifist members, and desire to maintain the traditionally strong US alliance.
Hatoyama's center-left Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which in opposition criticized the Japanese government for supporting "American wars," has vowed not to renew a naval refueling mission that supports US-led operations in Afghanistan when it expires in January.
During his first UN visit, Obama will also be careful to avoid interactions with top US foes after the Republican opposition rapped him for a friendly handshake with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in April.
There is also little chance of a one-on-one meeting with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"There is no obvious venue in which that would occur, and certainly we have no meetings or anything of the sort planned," said US envoy to the United Nations Susan Rice.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meanwhile urged Tehran to move forward on engaging in talks with the United States.
"We have made clear our desire to resolve issues with Iran, diplomatically. Iran must now decide whether to join us in this effort," she said.
As fresh protests over Iran's disputed presidential election rocked Tehran Friday, the White House condemned as "ignorant and hateful" new comments from Ahmadinejad denying the Holocaust.
Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, attending his first UN general assembly, has been urged by the US not to gloat over Scotland's decision to release the Lockerbie bomber, a move that enraged many Americans.
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As world leaders converge on New York for the annual UN general assembly, Obama was scheduled to kick off a flurry of high-profile bilateral encounters by meeting Chinese President Hu Jintao on Tuesday.
They will look to resolve a simmering trade row ahead of the G20 summit of leading economies in Pittsburgh later in the week, and Obama's first presidential visit to China in November.
US officials last week slapped punitive tariffs of an additional 35 percent on Chinese-made tire imports, prompting Beijing to lodge a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO).
With such a significant chunk of the world economy relying on the symbiotic US-China relationship, other world leaders will be hoping Hu and Obama can make peace.
The pair are also likely to discuss policy toward North Korea, whose leader on Friday reportedly told a Chinese envoy that the country was willing to engage in bilateral and multilateral talks on Pyongyang's controversial nuclear program.
Obama meets Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday, looking to build on the positive response that greeted his revamped plans for missile defense in Europe after his administration determined that Iran's short- and medium-range missiles presented a more imminent threat.
Russia had condemned a scheme to install an anti-missile radar in the Czech Republic and missile interceptors in Poland drawn up by Obama's predecessor George W. Bush that focused on Iran's development of intercontinental ballistic missile capabilities.
Russia's defense ministry confirmed Saturday it had scrapped plans to site missiles on the European Union's border after Obama's announcement.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin hailed Obama's "brave" decision, but said it should be followed by other US measures: to lift Soviet-era restrictions on the export of sensitive technology to Russia and to help its WTO membership bid.
Obama is also poised to meet with Japan's Yukio Hatoyama on Wednesday, two weeks after the new prime minister ended more than half a century of almost unbroken rule by the conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
The coalition government is seeking to strike a balance between the demands of some of its own left-leaning and pacifist members, and desire to maintain the traditionally strong US alliance.
Hatoyama's center-left Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which in opposition criticized the Japanese government for supporting "American wars," has vowed not to renew a naval refueling mission that supports US-led operations in Afghanistan when it expires in January.
During his first UN visit, Obama will also be careful to avoid interactions with top US foes after the Republican opposition rapped him for a friendly handshake with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in April.
There is also little chance of a one-on-one meeting with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"There is no obvious venue in which that would occur, and certainly we have no meetings or anything of the sort planned," said US envoy to the United Nations Susan Rice.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meanwhile urged Tehran to move forward on engaging in talks with the United States.
"We have made clear our desire to resolve issues with Iran, diplomatically. Iran must now decide whether to join us in this effort," she said.
As fresh protests over Iran's disputed presidential election rocked Tehran Friday, the White House condemned as "ignorant and hateful" new comments from Ahmadinejad denying the Holocaust.
Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, attending his first UN general assembly, has been urged by the US not to gloat over Scotland's decision to release the Lockerbie bomber, a move that enraged many Americans.
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