NATO invites Putin to attend Bucharest summit

Brussels - NATO member states have invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend a NATO summit in Bucharest, officials from the Brussels-based military alliance said Wednesday. 'The NATO allies felt it was appropriate, given our relationship with Russia, to invite Putin,' said NATO spokesman James Appathurai. Appathurai said the allies believed that Putin's presence would provide 'added value' to the summit and would help 'clear the air.' Relations between the Western alliance and its Cold War era foe have turned increasingly sour in recent months. Issues dividing the two sides include plans by the United States to build a missile defence shield in eastern Europe and the future status of Kosovo, a Serbian province seeking independence. The Bucharest summit, which is to be attended by all of NATO's 26 member states, is due to take place in the Romanian capital on April 2-4. US president George W Bush is among the world's heavyweights that are expected to attend the meeting. NATO said Moscow had not yet replied to its invitation. © 2008 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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