By
The Associated Press
PARIS - President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet for the first time in July in Italy, if not sooner, Secretary of State Colin Powell and his Russian counterpart said yesterday.
U.S.-Russia ties have been frayed recently, but both Powell and Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov indicated in a joint news conference they were seeking more cooperation.
As to the recent spy scandal that resulted in the U.S. expulsion of about 50 Russian diplomats and retaliatory expulsions by Moscow, Powell said, "We've moved on from that incident."
"We are both interested in turning this page," Ivanov said, speaking through a translator.
On a long-running international issue, the two made a joint plea for the Israelis and Palestinians to "take parallel and reciprocal steps" to end violent flare-ups. Both the United States and Russia "are deeply concerned by the continued violence in the Middle East," their statement said.
The men met for breakfast at the Russian ambassador's residence in Paris after a meeting with other European leaders the day before to discuss the Balkans. After yesterday's meeting, Powell headed for Macedonia and a two-day tour of the Balkans.
Putin and Bush would meet - at the latest - at the time of the Group of Eight economic summit in Genoa, Italy, planned for July 20-22.
"We hope there might be a possibility of doing it earlier," Powell said. But he said the schedules of both presidents were busy.
Some critics of Bush's Russia policy have suggested the president was deliberately delaying a first meeting with Putin to play down the importance of the U.S.-Russian relationship.
But Powell said, "Both presidents are anxious to see this meeting take place as soon as possible."
Powell also said he had invited Ivanov to visit Washington next month, in part to pave the way for the July meeting.
The two advisers discussed a number of U.S.-Russian issues, including NATO expansion, Bush administration plans to move ahead with a national missile defense, Chechnya and Russian arms sales to Iran.
"The minister is well aware of our concerns on those sorts of sales, and we will continue that discussion," Powell said.
For his part, Ivanov said, "We pay attention to the concerns which are raised by the U.S. side, and we are ready to pursue the dialogue."
Russia opposes U.S. plans to build a shield against ballistic missiles, viewing it as a violation of the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. But Moscow has softened its position in recent months, suggesting it might be willing to talk about such a system - and even raising the possibility of working on its own.
Ivanov said Russia was willing to enter into "constructive dialogue" with the United States on such issues.
Both men also expressed a willingness to resume talks between the two nations on weapons proliferation and other strategic and military issues.
And they agreed to resume work on efforts to reach a common approach on trying to keep arms out of the hands of Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia.
Powell sought to reinforce the U.S. position on missile defense by saying he would have a hard time explaining to one of his grandsons how anyone could be against a system that would help a country defend itself.
Powell has two grandsons, one 6 and one 12.
Ivanov replied, "Let me talk to your grandson," said a U.S. official.
