President Donald Trump told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday not to meddle in the U.S. elections, appearing to make light of a scandal that had led to a two-year investigation into his campaign's contact with the Kremlin during the 2016 elections.

Asked by a reporter whether he would raise the issue during a bilateral meeting with Putin, Trump said: "Yes, of course I will."

Trump then turned to Putin to give the directive twice while pointing at the Russian leader. Putin maintained a smile as the remark was interpreted for him.

Trump and Putin were heading into a meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Osaka, Japan. It was the first time the two leaders have had a formal face-to-face meeting since a controversial high-profile summit in Helsinki last July.

Relations between the two countries have been sour for years, worsening after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and backed Syrian President Bashar Assad in the Syrian war. In a recent television interview, Putin said that relations between Moscow and Washington were "getting worse and worse."

For his part, Trump has sought better relations with Putin to tackle a host of issues, including his goal to rein in North Korea's nuclear ambitions. On Friday, he emphasized the positive.

"Its a great honor to be with President Putin," Trump said. "We have many things to discuss, including trade and including some disarmament."