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Russian President in Brussels to Meet EU, NATO Leaders
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived at Brussels Monday evening for a three-day visit in Brussels and talks with European Union (EU) leaders and senior NATO officials, which set to be dominated by U.S.-led efforts to build a global coalition against terrorism after the attacks on New York and Washington.
Amid rarely heavy security, Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel and a guard of honor welcomed Putin and his wife Lyudmila at Brussels' military airport. The Russian president gave no comments to the press on his arrival.
Putin was due to hold talks Tuesday with Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, whose country is holding rotating EU presidency. He will meet Verhofstadt, European Commission President Romano Prodi and other EU officials at a EU-Russia summit Wednesday.
He was also expected to meet NATO Secretary-General George Robertson Wednesday to discuss efforts by the western alliance and Russia to provide assistance and support to the United States.
EU leaders have praised Putin for his prompt and strong backing for Washington, which is trying to persuade the Afghanistan's ruling Taliban to hand over Saudi billionaire Osama bin Laden, the alleged prime suspect in the September 11 attacks.
"The terror attacks will dominate Wednesday's meeting (between Putin and EU leaders)," EU spokesman Reijo Kemppinen told reporters earlier on Monday, adding that the two sides would issue a joint declaration on terrorism.
EU officials said the fight against money laundering, including closer cooperation between customs authorities, would feature high on agenda at the summit.
"What we wish to see is an intensification of cooperation, including between Russian and EU law enforcement bodies," Kemppinen said.
The agenda will also include EU hopes to import more Russian oil and gas as part of an ongoing "energy dialogue" aimed at cutting the 15-nation bloc's reliance on energy from the Middle East, he said.
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