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Bush to Putin: Stop 'Hyperventilating' About Missile Shield NewsMax.com Wires HEILIGENDAMM, Germany -- President Bush said he hoped to convince Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday that a Europe-based U.S. missile defense system is not an issue either side should "be hyperventilating about." Bush and Putin are seeing each other here for the first time since they clashed over U.S. plans for a missile shield flared into Cold War-style rhetoric. With U.S.-Russia relations at their lowest point in decades, Putin and Bush will sit down Thursday on the sidelines of a summit of the world's eight major industrialized democracies being held at this seaside resort. The United States says the shield targets a potential Iranian nuclear weapon, not Russian ones. Russia retorts that's an "insufficient" explanation. Putin has warned that a new shield could require Russia to retarget missiles toward Europe or take other buildup measures. Trying to tamp down Moscow's anger, Bush officials have argued that it's obvious the defense system isn't aimed at Russia because of its huge arsenal of nuclear rockets. "A missile defense system cannot stop multilaunch regimes. ... The fact is that you can't stop two, three, four, five missiles," the president said after a meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair. He added: "Russia is not a threat. They're not a military threat. They're not something that we ought to be hyperventilating about." Story Continues Below
Blair had held out hope that he could bridge an impasse between the United States and some other countries over setting specific targets at the meeting for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions thought to cause global warming. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, as summit host, is pushing for binding targets. But Bush stuck to his view that specific targets would not be the result of this week's summit, also attended by other European leaders, as well as those from Canada, Japan and Russia. "Nothing's going to happen in terms of substantial reductions unless China and India are participating," the president said. Blair said he thought the leaders would at least agree on "the need to make sure that we have a substantial reduction in emissions" by all the world's top greenhouse gas emitters. For his part, Bush pushed his desire to bring allies along in support of tougher action against Sudan over the crisis in its Darfur region. Bush announced new U.S. penalties against Sudan last week, but he also wants backing for a U.N. resolution to add pressure on the government to allow a U.N. peacekeeping force. "The international organizations can't move quickly enough," Bush said. "I don't know how long it's going to take for people to hear the call to save lives. ... If the U.N. won't act, we need to take action ourselves." The president indulged wistful thoughts about this month's departure of Blair, for years his closest foreign ally. "It's a nostalgic moment for me," Bush said, the Baltic Sea shimmering behind the two men. "I'm sorry it's come to be. But that's what happens in life." In between private meetings on the sidelines, the eight leaders had a full day of meetings to discuss issues ranging from Africa aid to trade and Lebanon. The gathering is being held under tight security, with Heiligendamm entirely encircled by a seven-mile, razor wire-topped fence to keep out protesters and terrorists. Thousands of demonstrators spent the night in a no-demonstration zone established in a half-mile perimeter around the fence. On Thursday, protesters for a second day blockaded roads leading into the summit zone. And offshore, Greenpeace environmental activists led police on a boat chase, with one boatload briefly spilling into the Baltic after collision. There are many items on the disagreement list between Washington and Moscow. Russia is unhappy about U.S. support for independence for the breakaway Serbian province of Kosovo. It bristles at what it sees as U.S. meddling in its affairs and its traditional sphere of influence. Washington is getting fed up with Putin for overseeing what the U.S. perceives as an era of muzzled dissent and centralized power. Bush this week put Russia on a par with China, calling U.S.-Russian ties "complex" and criticizing democracy as being "derailed" under Putin. The remarks carried extra sting because they were delivered publicly and in the Czech Republic. The NATO membership of the former Soviet satellite, which threw off communism in 1989, along with others, is a thorn in Russia's side. On the other hand, Moscow has shown more willingness of late to help the West take on Iran over its nuclear program. Washington wants to preserve this momentum. "There's a lot of constructive work we can do," Bush said. The Russians projected a similar air. They said the open hostility was part of a constructive relationship - while reaffirming disagreements with Washington's view of Russian democracy. Moscow's unrelenting objections to the proposed missile shield overshadow everything. Russian suspicions were roused earlier this year when the U.S. chose the Czech Republic and Poland as the missile defense sites. Bush is to visit both countries after the summit. Putin spokesman Dmitri Peskov promised "uncomfortable consequences" if the shield is deployed "next to our borders" without more acceptable explanations from the United States. But, he added: "Russia is the last country in this world who is thinking about confrontation or starting another Cold War." It turns out Russians aren't the only ones harboring suspicions. White House aides were instructed not to use their wireless e-mail devices during the summit for fear of Russian eavesdropping.
© 2007 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Editor's note: Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
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