Clinton, Trump vie for world leaders' attention in New York

With national security again a major U.S. election issue after bombings in New York and New Jersey, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump sought to burnish their foreign-policy credentials on Monday by meeting world leaders at the United Nations.

For Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, it was a return to a role she knows well after she served as President Barack Obama's secretary of state for four years.

Trump, the Republican nominee, is a newcomer to the global stage who is hurriedly trying to play catch-up.

In rapid succession, Clinton met briefly with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and then Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

Trump also met Sisi minutes after the Egyptian leader spoke with Clinton in the same Manhattan hotel.

The meetings came on a day that started with Clinton suggesting Trump’s harsh rhetoric toward Muslims aids the Islamic State militant group's recruiting efforts. Trump pushed back, arguing the United States was less safe as a result of Obama and Clinton’s policies.

REUTERS