Official website of the President of Russia

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Vladimir Putin: I would like to say that I too was glad to meet with the President of the United States. In addition to a good personal relationship I and my Russian colleagues can say that our interaction with the United States is becoming truly effective not only on bilateral issues, but in terms of addressing major international issues. And there is a special topic which places a burden of responsibility both on the United States and on Russia. It is international security.

In the time since the signing of our agreements on international stability we have been able to evaluate these documents again, and we recently submitted them to the country’s parliament for ratification. I mean first and foremost the Treaty on Strategic Offensive Reductions between Russia and the United States.

I was glad to see George Bush and to talk with him about the problems that are of interest to Russia and the Untied States, which worry both him and myself.

Question: What can you say about the summit’s discussion of the fight against terrorism?

Vladimir Putin (adding to George Bush’s remarks): The armed forces of our countries and the secret services are geared to meet global challenges. Unfortunately, terrorism today has a global character. So, as we have repeatedly said, it is absolutely necessary to combine our efforts if we want to be successful in that struggle. And we welcome the firm position of the US President on the issue. We welcome the courage and consistency with which he is pursuing his policy in spite of some extraneous and concomitant elements. We expect that our interaction will make a decisive contribution to eradication of terrorism in the world.