[UPDATE] G8 leaders struggle on acceptable statement on Syria Members of the Free Syrian Army hold onto their weapons as they walk on a road at Haram, near Idlib in Syria, September 1, 2012. ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 18 (UPI) -- Group of Eight leaders worked to develop a statement on Syria acceptable to nations wanting a transition of power and Russia, an ally of the Syrian government. Accounts differed from officials Tuesday morning at the G8 summit in Northern Ireland on the prospects of developing a substantive agreement on Syria and the fate of its president, Bashar Assad, to which Russia might sign on, The New York Times reported. Stress over how to address the expanding civil war and humanitarian crisis in Syria dominated the summit that ends Tuesday. British Prime Minister David Cameron had indicated he hoped the meeting would result in a joint declaration that can be used in talks expected to occur in Geneva, Switzerland, next month under the auspices of the United States and Russia. British officials had expressed hope Assad could be convinced to send a representative to the Geneva discussions, paving the way for him to eventually relinquish power. The statement also was expected to include initiatives on tackling global tax avoidance and on clamping down on the legal maneuvers used by multinational companies to reduce their tax exposure, the Times said. Britain also wanted an agreement on preventing ransom payments in kidnappings, which it believes is now a major source of terrorist funding. Seeking consent on Syria amid a West-Russia schism over its future is a key job of Group of Eight leaders, a White House aide said. "I think it's fairly evident that there's a difference of view on Syria between the United States and some of our -- well, the former G7 -- and Russia," White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters at the summit's lakeside resort in Enniskillen Monday night. "But I think the goal of working these issues through a G8 is to see what type of common ground can we forge," he said as the eight world leaders prepared to hold their second of two days of meetings and issue the traditional G8 summit statement in the afternoon. If common ground among all eight is not reached, part of the final communique on Syria could be issued on behalf of the G7 instead of the G8, some diplomatic sources cited by British newspaper The Guardian said. The G7 -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States -- has met since 1976 as a way for like-minded leaders to talk about global problems. Russian President Vladimir Putin has supported Assad diplomatically and with weapons and has warned against U.S. plans to begin providing military aid to Syrian rebels. U.S. President Barack Obama met with Putin Monday to try to persuade him to put pressure Assad to negotiate a transition, but they openly disagreed when talking to media after they met. "Of course, our opinions do not coincide," Putin said at a joint news conference with Obama. But all of us have the intention to stop the violence in Syria, to stop the growth of victims and to solve the situation peacefully, including by bringing the parties to the negotiations table in Geneva. "With respect to Syria, we do have differing perspectives on the problem," Obama said. But we share an interest in reducing the violence; securing chemical weapons and ensuring that they're neither used nor are they subject to proliferation; and that we want to try to resolve the issue through political means, if possible. "And so we have instructed our teams to continue to work on the potential of a Geneva follow-up to the first meeting," Obama said. Five principles discussed over dinner Monday included providing humanitarian aid; actions to combat extremist elements, declaring that use of chemical weapons is unacceptable, preparing for stabilization efforts following a change of government and discussing transitioning to a new executive authority in Syria, the Times said. "Our objective remains progress toward a political solution which results in a transitional government," said a spokesman for Cameron told the Times. "There was an acknowledgment on all sides of the importance of putting in place the conditions that could lead to" successful talks in Geneva," the spokesman said. Meanwhile, RIA Novosti reported that Iranian officials said they don't plan to send troops to assist Assad, refuting reports claiming Tehran was preparing for direct intervention in Syria's civil war that began in March 2011 and has claimed an estimated 93,000 lives. "We categorically deny this information," Foreign Ministry spokesman Seyed Abbas Araqchi said. Forces loyal to Assad already have the necessary means to fight against "terrorists acting in Syria," Araqchi said, adding, "Iran has no need to provide military aid to Syria's authorities."