Bush, Putin Set Aside Feuds at Talks in Russia
MOSCOW — After months of feuding, President Bush and Russian President Vladimir V. Putin met Sunday and emphasized harmony and personal chemistry, a reflection of common policy goals as they prepared to mark the 60th anniversary of the defeat of the Nazis.
The focus on good feelings underscored the belief of both governments that their recent bickering might be a distraction from far more pressing matters such as the nuclear ambitions of North Korea and Iran.
Bush and Putin met for nearly an hour and a half at the Russian president's estate near Moscow, accompanied only by interpreters for 40 minutes before being joined by national security aides and other officials. A dinner between the two first couples that was scheduled for about an hour stretched to more than two hours and included a tour of the estate compound, U.S. national security advisor Stephen Hadley said.
Officials said the talks focused largely on the Middle East, with Bush and Putin agreeing to back Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's planned pullout from the Gaza Strip and to offer support to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. They also touched on North Korea and Iran, officials said.
"This meeting has demonstrated once again that for the two presidents there are no forbidden topics," said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei V. Lavrov, appearing after the session with his U.S. counterpart, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Rice, similarly, said that Bush and Putin "feel that they can discuss anything."
"They say what they think, they say what they mean, and then they act on that," she said.
Bush, seated next to Putin, joined about 50 other world leaders and some 8,000 invitees in Red Square this morning as a massive Victory Day military parade got underway. More than 7,000 soldiers and about 2,600 World War II veterans were to take part.
Sunday evening, on the grounds of Putin's estate, the two presidents took a spin in a shiny, white Soviet-made 1956 Volga sedan. Bush took the wheel, and at one point called out: "I'm having so much fun we're going for another lap."
They joked about First Lady Laura Bush's comic performance at a Washington gala last week where she poked fun at her husband's early bedtimes and lack of Texas ranch bona fides.
"I could see how Laura attacked you sometimes, so at today's dinner we will have a chance to protect you," Putin cracked.
