Tuesday, 7 July 2009
U.S. President Barack Obama has met with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin at his home outside Moscow.
The two men exchanged cordial greetings at the start of their breakfast meeting Tuesday. The Russian prime minister said his country was hoping for better relations with the United States under the new U.S. president.
Mr. Obama praised Mr. Putin's extraordinary work as both president and prime minister, and said their talks presented an "excellent opportunity" to put bilateral relations on a much stronger footing.
The meeting between Mr. Obama and Mr. Putin, a former Soviet-era KGB official, follows Mr. Obama's comment last week that Mr. Putin's world view remained stuck in the Cold War era.
The U.S. leader had also said that Mr. Putin, who picked Dmitri Medvedev to suceed him as president, "still has a lot of sway (influence) in Russia."
During a joint news conference with Mr. Medvedev Monday, Mr. Obama said he regards his Russian counterpart as the president, and that his interest is dealing directly with him.
The U.S. president also said he is interested in reaching out to Mr. Putin and "all other influential sectors in Russian society."
Mr. Obama and Mr. Medvedev signed an agreement Monday committing the U.S. and Russia to sharply reduce the number of their nuclear weapons and delivery vehicles.
The two leaders signed a statement instructing negotiators to finalize a replacement for the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty that expires in December. The agreement provides for a reduction of warheads from 2,200 to between 1,500 and 1,675 and of launch vehicles from 1,600 to between 500 and 1,100.
Mr. Obama stressed the importance of reducing strategic arms, saying the United States and Russia, as the world's two main nuclear powers, must lead by example.
The two men also agreed to instruct experts to analyze ballistic missile threats and prepare recommendations, but announced no breakthrough in the controversial U.S. plans for deploying a missile defense system in Central Europe.
Russia says U.S. plans for a missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic would threaten Russian security and start a new European arms race. The United States says the missile shield is aimed at countering a possible attack from Iran or North Korea and in no way targets Russia.
After his talks with Mr. Putin, Mr. Obama meets briefly with former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, before delivering a major speech at Moscow's New Economic School.
