Associated Press - 09.15.2003

 

 

 

 

AP/David Johnson's List

Russia's Putin to See Bush at Camp David

DREXEL HILL, PA -  The White House formally announced Monday that President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet Sept. 26-27 at Camp David, Md.

The Kremlin announced the summit last week; the White House made its announcement Monday evening during a Bush fund-raiser in Pennsylvania.

The meeting comes as Russia and the United States seek to patch up relations after deep disagreement over the war in Iraq and continued debate about the postwar situation.

Moscow has recently given a cautious support to the U.S.-proposed U.N. resolution offering the United Nations a greater role in Iraq, even though it said the document needed more work.

While Bush is sure to lobby Putin during the meeting, the White House statement said only that the session was a chance to ``deepen their cooperation to deal with the shared challenges of the 21st century.''

During his trip to the United States, Putin also is to deliver a speech before the United Nations General Assembly and hold bilateral and multilateral meetings, the Kremlin said.

U.S.-Russian relations, which were bolstered after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, were damaged earlier this year by Moscow's criticism of the war in Iraq.

During a brief meeting in June, Bush and Putin agreed to move past the rift.