By Mike McCarthy Jul 2, 2007, 20:43 GMT
Washington - US President George W Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed Monday to broader discussions on missile defence in Europe, but remained far apart on US plans to deploy a shield to Poland and the Czech Republic.
Putin expanded on a proposal for a Russian role in the system he first made last month at the G8 summit in Germany. In addition to using the Russian radar site in Azerbaijan, Moscow is now willing to include a new one in southern Russia as a substitute for installing bases in the two Eastern European countries, Putin said.
Bush said the United States plans on forging ahead with the Polish and Czech sites and was vague about the rest of Putin's proposal. Bush, however, endorsed Putin's suggestion to widen the dialogue on missile defence to other European countries, NATO and the NATO-Russia Council.
'I'm in strong agreement with that concept,' Bush said.
Bush and Putin emerged along the sunny coastline after two days of casual meetings at the Bush family's oceanfront compound in Kennebunkport, Maine. The two leaders were hopeful the relaxed, low- key atmosphere would contribute to repairing relations that have fallen to their lowest point since the end of the Cold War.
Bush and Putin retreated to lunch after briefing reporters on their talks. They had earlier been boating and fishing with Bush's father, the 41st US president. Putin recorded the only catch of the day but as a gesture said it was a 'team effort.'
'Very thoughtful of you,' Bush replied.
US plans to install a radar site in the Czech Republic and 10 interceptor missiles in Poland has been at the heart of the tension. Russia fears the system will target its nuclear fleet, while Washington insists missile defence in Europe is essential for fending off Iran's growing ballistic missile capability.
Putin also wants to establish information exchange centres in Moscow and Brussels to improve coordination on security, in addition to widening dialogue between the United States, NATO and Russia.
'Such cooperation, I believe, would result in raising to an entirely new level the quality of cooperation between Russia and the United States,' Putin said. 'And for all practical purposes, this would lead to a great deal of development of strategic partnership in the area of security.'
The United States and Russia have also been at odds over how to punish the Iranian government for rejecting UN Security Council demands to halt uranium enrichment. Moscow has been reluctant to go along with tough measures.
'We're close on recognizing that we got to work together to send a common message,' Bush said.
Putin emphasized that Iran has begun responding, pointing to Tehran's decision earlier this month to begin working with the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and allow the resumption of inspections.
'I think all of this would contribute to further substantial intercourse on this issue,' Putin said through a translator.
Iran denies allegations that it is using a civilian nuclear energy programme to mask efforts to develop a nuclear weapon and has continued to expand its uranium enrichment activities in defiance of the Security Council.
The United States and its allies are pushing for a Security Council resolution that would for the third time in less than a year place additional sanctions on Iran's Islamic regime. Russia has only agreed to watered down sanctions after weeks of difficult negotiations.
Another key issue that has widened the US-Russia rift is the dispute over the UN plan for Kosovo but the issue did not come up at the press conference Monday. The United States and European Union back independence for the province, which has been UN administered since NATO intervened in 1999 to halt ethnic violence. Kosovo Serbs fear they will be marginalized by majority ethnic Albanians.
Putin arrived at the compound Sunday afternoon after stepping off the US presidential helicopter with former president George Bush, father of the current president. The elder Bush is the official host for the meeting, but it was unclear if he took part in the policy discussions.
Putin visit marked the first time in Bush's more than six years in office that he met with a foreign leader at his parents' private residence. Bush has previously hosted Putin at his ranch in Crawford, Texas.
View blog reactions
If you liked this story please support M&C and Buzz the site on Yahoo.
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)
Advertising
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)