[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book II)]
[July 15, 2006]
[Pages 1394-1401]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



The President's News Conference With President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia in Strelna, Russia
July 15, 2006

    President Putin. Dear ladies and gentlemen, I have just completed my 
meeting with the President of the United States. The Russian party is 
satisfied with the results of this meeting. The meeting has reaffirmed 
that Russia and the United States remain reliable and mutually 
interested partners. We have been able to reach a whole range of 
agreements on key issues on the bilateral and international agenda.
    We have adopted a joint statement, the basis of which are our 
parallel initiatives on the secure development of nuclear energy. Its 
main goal is to contribute to the sustainability and reliability of the 
supply of this type of energy resource and the parallel reduction of the 
threat of the spread of nuclear weapons. We believe that this will be 
possible in the case of the creation of a system of international 
enrichment centers integrated into a single network and, of course, 
under strict control on the part of the IAEA.
    It is equally important to pay a close attention to the development 
of innovative technology in the creation of new-generation reactors. The 
most productive way to go is to carry out this work on the basis of 
broad international cooperation. Such an approach will have a positive 
and stabilizing effect on the progress of international political and 
economic processes.
    We have also supported the United States proposal on the Global 
Nuclear Energy Partnership. The Russian initiative on the creation of 
multilateral centers for the provision of nuclear fuel cycle services 
and the idea of a global partnership in this area complement each other 
very well, and we'll jointly work towards integrating these two 
initiatives. In order to achieve this, we'll have to resolve problems 
that have to do

[[Page 1395]]

with the terms of trade in nuclear materials between Russia and the 
United States.
    In addition to that, we have come up with a joint statement on 
fighting acts of nuclear terrorism. It reaffirms the shared desire of 
Russia and the United States to counter this dangerous threat and opens 
new horizons for our joint efforts. Our countries are demonstrating 
their commitment to taking the most serious measures to counter the 
acquisition, transport, or use of nuclear and radioactive materials by 
terrorists, as well as improvised explosive devices based on such 
materials. It is equally important to rule out any hostile actions 
against nuclear facilities. We hope that this initiative will draw the 
due attention of other participants in the G-8 and will deliver concrete 
results.
    We have had a productive discussion of the entire range of 
international issues. Those include Iran's nuclear program, the 
situation in the Middle East, on the Korean Peninsula, and in other 
regions of the world.
    We also discussed the settlement of persistent conflicts in regions 
that are Russia's neighbors. Both sides have expressed and reaffirmed 
their commitment to resolving all these problems through peaceful 
political and diplomatic means. We intend to step up our efforts in the 
spirit of solidarity to counter new threats and challenges. A good 
example is our joint initiative to hold in spring 2007 in Vienna a 
political conference on the partnership of governments, civil society, 
and business in counterterrorism.
    On the whole, we hope that our joint proposals and agreements will 
lay a good groundwork for a successful G-8 summit. They will set the 
right constructive tone for the proceedings of a credible international 
forum.
    We have also discussed bilateral cooperation in the light of the 
parallel instructions to the government agencies and departments of the 
two countries to step up our interaction. We have registered success in 
the achievement of our goals in all areas: economy, security, science 
and outer space, people-to-people contacts. Some of the instructions 
have already been fulfilled; others are still being carried out. New 
goals have been agreed upon that will be addressed in nearest future. 
Those include the peaceful use of nuclear energy, fighting money 
laundering, fighting avian influenza, and cultural cooperation.
    We have not limited ourselves to the discussion of the current 
problems; quite the contrary. We have tried to glance at the Russian-
U.S. relationship from the perspective of the future and in the broad 
context of the development of the system of international relations as a 
whole.
    I would like to thank our American partners for a friendly and 
constructive atmosphere in which our meeting has taken place. Thank you 
for your attention.
    President Bush. We did have a very good discussion today. It was 
started--actually, our discussion started last night over a really good 
dinner. And I want to thank you and Mrs. Putina for being such wonderful hosts.
    You've got to admit this is a fantastic setting. It's beautiful. The 
cottages are very comfortable. I think that our fellow G-8 leaders are 
going to really enjoy being here.
    Anyway, we had a good discussion this morning. One thing is clear, 
is relations between America and Russia are good, and they're important 
that they be good. We've got a lot to--we've got a lot to work on. We 
discussed North Korea and Iran. Those are two difficult issues, made 
less difficult because Russia and the United States are willing to work 
together to send clear messages to both governments that their nuclear 
weapons ambitions are not acceptable.
    We talked about the Middle East. I explained my position, which I'm 
confident I'll be asked about here in a minute. The President talked 
about his concerns. We share the same concerns. We are concerned about 
the violence, and we're troubled by the loss of innocent life. President

[[Page 1396]]

Putin, like me, wants there to be peaceful dialog. And so we had a good, 
frank discussion about the issue.
    We talked about our bilateral relations. I think it's indicative of 
the strength of our relationship that we're able to agree on 
nonproliferation matters. Not only agree on it, we're taking the lead on 
this issue. And I want to thank the President for his leadership on this 
issue.
    We're talking about nuclear cooperation, and we're about to begin 
dialogs about how we can cooperate better when it comes to peaceful uses 
of nuclear power. We're talking about counterterrorism. Nation-states 
face the threat of terrorism, and we want to work together to deal with 
this threat.
    I, of course--we talked philosophy. One thing, what happens when you 
get relaxed and are friendly with each other, you're able to share 
philosophies and able to ask questions about decisionmaking. And I 
appreciated very much our discussion last night and this morning about 
why the President has made decisions he's made, what decisions he 
intends to make, and the decisions I made. We don't always agree with 
each other, but nevertheless, it's important for leaders to be able to 
share philosophy, whether it be the philosophy of government or the 
philosophy of governing.
    And our relationship is good. And I want to thank the President for 
his hospitality. I thank you for your good food, thank you for the 60th 
birthday gift you gave me last night, and thanks for the meeting this 
morning.
    President Putin. Ladies and gentlemen, please ask your questions. 
There will be three questions on each side. We'll start with the Russian 
journalists.

Russia-U.S. Relations

    Q. Thank you. Good afternoon. My question is to both leaders. 
Question one is to President Bush. Russia, at the negotiations with its 
international partners, has demonstrated openness and transparency in 
its economy but does not always receive an adequate response. We can see 
this at the talks on the accession of Russia to the WTO. Since 2001, the 
United States has been supportive of Russia's accession to the WTO, but 
why are you the key impediment for the completion of this process? I'm 
sure that you've discussed this issue at the negotiations.
    And my question to Mr. Putin: Given such difficulties, can we afford 
to give up a proactive position with respect to the accession to the 
WTO? Thank you.
    President Bush. We're tough negotiators. But--and the reason why is 
because we want the agreement that we reach to be accepted by our United 
States Congress. In other words, when we negotiate an agreement, it has 
to be approved--any trade agreement has to be approved. But I believe 
we're fair negotiators, and our negotiators come to the table trying to 
achieve the objective that I've sent out, that we want Russian accession 
into WTO. That's what we want. And we will continue negotiating.
    Evidently, there was a false report in the press that said a deal 
was reached. Well, it's almost reached. In other words, we--a lot of the 
areas, we found accommodation in a lot of the areas. But there's more 
work to be done. And we discussed this today, and I assured the 
President that we'll continue to negotiate. And he assured me that we'll 
continue to negotiate in good faith to try to reach an agreement that 
has been difficult to achieve. I understand that.
    But you've just got to understand the intention to achieve an 
agreement is there.
    President Putin. I and my guest, my friend, the President of the 
United States, George W. Bush, are often asked the question, ``Does our 
personal relationship help in progressing--in addressing this question, 
in resolving various international issues?'' I know that he believes so, 
that this informal personal relationship is helping us in our work. I 
have to tell you that, at the same time, it does not hamper us in 
standing

[[Page 1397]]

up for our national interests in this or that area.
    The WTO accession talks are very concrete, calculable in their 
nature, which can be expressed in terms of millions of dollars or 
rubles. This is a complicated process that has lasted for quite a while, 
for quite a few years. This difficulty is not a surprise to us. We will 
continue to work further, pursuing our interest, the interest of our 
developing economy.

Situation in the Middle East

    Q. The violence in the Middle East is escalating despite calls for 
restraint. What can you, President Bush and President Putin, do to stop 
the violence, stop the fighting, given that there is divisions among 
allies here about whether Israel is using excessive force?
    President Bush. I think you'll find all parties here want the 
violence to stop. In my judgment, the best way to stop the violence is 
to understand why the violence occurred in the first place. And that's 
because Hizballah has been launching rocket attacks out of Lebanon into 
Israel and because Hizballah captured two Israeli soldiers. That's why we have 
violence.
    And the best way to stop the violence is for Hizballah to lay down 
its arms and to stop attacking. And therefore, I call upon Syria to 
exert influence over Hizballah.
    Now, here's my concern, is that we were making good progress toward 
a two-state solution in the Middle East. The Israeli Prime 
Minister came to Washington and talked to me 
about his desire for there to be a democracy living side by side with 
another democracy, said this was part of his strategic vision for Israel 
and for peace.
    And he was working toward that end. As you 
know, he made efforts to reach out to President Abbas, who we support. He made efforts to reach out to 
countries in the neighborhood to help achieve this vision. And as the 
vision was progressing, certain elements--certain terrorist elements 
began to act to stop the advance of democracy. The militant wing of 
Hamas made decisions to attack and to capture. Hizballah has made 
decisions to stop the advance of a two-state solution.
    The solution--short-term solution is for Hizballah to stop the 
attacks. The longer-term solution is for nations around the world and 
nations in the neighborhood to support those who support the advance of 
democracy.
    President Putin. I agree with the premise that it is absolutely 
unacceptable to try and reach this or that goal, including political 
goals, through the use of force, through abductions, through carrying 
out strikes against an independent state from the territory of another 
state. This is all true. And in this context, we consider Israel's 
concerns to be justified.
    At the same time, we work under the assumption that the use of force 
should be balanced. And in any case, bloodshed should stop as soon as 
possible. This should be the point of departure for the efforts to 
create an enabling environment for the resolution of the entire set of 
problems. Escalation of violence, in our opinion, will not yield 
positive results.
    At any rate, we share the approach with President Bush. We will take 
every necessary effort on both sides, and I hope that our G-8 colleagues 
will support us. We will find common ground on this front in order to 
bring the situation, as soon as possible, to a position where concrete 
results could be achieved, not only in terms of the cessation of combat 
but also in terms of building an enabling environment for the 
development of Israel within secure borders, in the context of security, 
as well as in terms of the building of the independent Palestine state.

Russia-U.S. Relations/Nuclear Proliferation

    Q. Mr. President, let me address my question to both of you. There 
has been a lot of concerns about proliferation of weapons of mass 
destruction and missile delivery. Have you discussed this issue? If

[[Page 1398]]

yes, could you share the results of your talks? And also, if you could 
let me, we all can see that you enjoy good personal relationships, but 
do you notice any deterioration of ties on a state level between the two 
countries? Thank you.
    President Bush. What was the first part of the question?
    Q. Have you discussed proliferation of weapons of mass destruction 
and missile delivery, and what are the results of your talks?
    President Bush. We sure have. We talked about our concerns about 
Iran developing a nuclear weapon or Iran having the capacity to make a 
nuclear weapon, and we talked about North Korea. And the results of our 
talks are that we agree that we've got to work together to send a common 
message to both that there is a better way forward for these leaders.
    And so we're working with Russia and our partners to develop 
Security Council resolutions that will send a clear message. One thing 
is for certain, that if the Iranians see that the United States and 
Russia are working together on this issue, they'll understand the 
seriousness of our intent.
    And so we spent time talking about the issue--sure did. We 
understand that a grave threat that faces countries like America and 
Russia would be--is the ability of a terrorist organization to end up 
with a weapon of mass destruction. Both nations have had to deal with 
terrorism; both nations know what it's like to see people blown up. 
Russia suffered through one of the most horrible terrorist incidents in 
modern mankind, which is Beslan, where terrorists are willing to kill 
young children to achieve political objectives. And the President and I 
understand that when you make that kind of attitude with a weapon of 
mass destruction, you could be talking about greater catastrophe. And so 
we spent a lot of time talking about it.
    I think relations between the United States and Russia are very 
good. There's a lot of skeptics on both sides of the equation as to 
whether or not the relationship is good. We've got people in Russia 
questioning U.S. motives, people in America questioning Russian motives. 
But that's what happens when you have--when you're big nations that have 
got influence, where you've got leaders willing to make tough decisions. 
And I would characterize, from my perspective, that our relationship is 
strong and necessary. That's the point I want to make to you, that a 
strong relationship will make the world a better place, in my judgment, 
because we'll be better able to confront the current problems that face 
us all.
    President Putin. I have already mentioned that we will not 
participate in any crusades, in any holy alliances. This is true. I 
reaffirm our position in this matter. But our common goal is to make the 
world a more secure place, and certainly we'll be working with all our 
partners, including the United States, in order to address this problem. 
It is for this reason that we are joining our efforts with other G-8 
countries.
    And I have to say that this is not some kind of plot against a 
particular country, where a certain problem emerges, be it missile or 
nuclear proliferation. We are seeking not only for the possibility of 
controlling this or that process; we are seeking opportunities for 
ensuring their legal access to nuclear technology. It is to this end 
that we have adopted our joint initiative on the creation of 
international centers for uranium enrichment and reprocessing of spent 
nuclear fuel. These are not unilateral actions aimed at trying to block 
somebody's access to something. This is a search for solutions that 
could ensure development in the world, at the same time would make the 
development secure in terms of nuclear nonproliferation and missile 
nonproliferation.
    We're satisfied with the level of exchanges at the working level, 
which we have achieved in terms of bilateral cooperation. At the 
summit's end, in the context

[[Page 1399]]

of the U.N. Security Council, we will continue our work tonight and 
tomorrow in the course of our discussion with our partners who are 
arriving in St. Petersburg.

Iran

    Q. Mr. President, we know that you talked about Iran and North 
Korea. Let me ask you if you moved forward at all on these issues? Did 
you ask Russia to take specific steps, for example with Iran, to agree 
to U.N. sanctions? Did you discuss what you could move on--in North 
Korea to move it forward?
    And, President Putin, is Russia now willing, if necessary, to vote 
for sanctions in the United Nations to stop Iran's nuclear preparations?
    President Bush. We strategized on both issues. But this isn't the 
first time that we've talked together to--on how to solve problems. You 
might remember that Russia proposed a very interesting way forward for 
Iran. It was the Putin Government that said to the Iranians, ``If you 
want a civilian nuclear power program, we will support you in that; 
however, we will provide the fuel, and we'll collect the spent fuel.'' I 
thought it was a very innovative approach to solving the problem. I 
strongly supported the initiatives.
    So, Bill [Bill Plante, CBS News], to answer your question, this 
isn't the first time that we have strategized on how to solve this 
problem. And, yes, we talked about the U.N. Security Council resolution. 
And, no, I'm not going to tell you the particulars about the 
conversation. I will tell you, however, that there is common agreement 
that we need to get something done at the U.N., and I'm confident we 
will be able to do that. And there's agreement that we need to get 
something done on North Korea at the United Nations.
    Here's the thing, though, just so that everybody understands: 
Diplomacy is not two countries just saying, this is the way it is. 
Diplomacy is two countries agreeing to work together with other 
countries, in this case, to come up with common language that we can 
live with that sends the same message, and that is, no nuclear weapons 
programs.
    Our goal and objective is to have a nuclear-free--nuclear weapons-
free Korean Peninsula. Russia shares that objective, China shares the 
objective, Japan shares the objective, and South Korea shares the 
objective. So we've got common ground to move forward, and now we're 
working on language. And it was a very constructive meeting.
    President Putin. You know, I have spoken on this count for many 
times. I can repeat, it is not in Russia's national interest to see a 
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, 
especially in such an explosive region as the Middle East.
    This is something that we tell our Iranian partners directly. We 
have always told them about it. There is nothing novel or new about our 
position in this respect. But we work on the assumption that we have to 
find efficient ways of ensuring security around the world. We need to 
take efficient diplomatic steps that would not disrupt the gentle fabric 
of the negotiations in the search for mutually acceptable decisions. And 
we're satisfied with the status of the U.S.-Russia relationship in this 
area.
    Q. I apologize, but I would like to follow up on the question of my 
U.S. colleague. Could you speak at greater detail? You have discussed 
the Iranian nuclear issue in terms of what has happened before and what 
may happen in the future. There is now the situation with the Iranian 
nuclear issue. How do you see it as of now? And most importantly, what 
are we to expect in the future?
    President Bush. ----progress, because Russia and the United States 
agree that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon. In other words, the 
Iranians need to understand that we're speaking with one voice that they 
shouldn't have a weapon, and that's progress.

[[Page 1400]]

    You see, my judgment is they're testing the resolve of the parties 
to determine whether or not we really are resolved to work together to 
prevent them from having a weapon. And the clearer they hear a message, 
the better off--or the closer we'll be to them recognizing there's a 
better way forward. See, we've made our choice, and that's progress. 
We've agreed to work together to achieve a common goal. That's 
considerable progress.
    And now the choice is theirs to make. I have said the United States 
will change our posture on this issue if the Iranian Government does 
what they've already said they would do, which is to verifiably suspend 
their enrichment program, at which point, if they do so, we will come to 
the negotiating table. We will sit side by side.
    Right now we're negotiating together to send a common message. We 
will come to the table. It's their choice to make, however. There is a 
better way forward for the Iranian people than to be isolated because of 
their Government's actions. And so I would say that we've made good 
progress on the issue.
    President Putin. I can see that members of the Russian and U.S. 
press have colluded and are tormenting us with the same kind of 
questions. [Laughter]
    President Bush. An old colluder, but a colluder.
    Q. [Inaudible]
    President Bush. That's right. [Laughter]
    President Putin. I would like to add to what has been said by 
George, that Russia has agreed to participate in the six-way format for 
the discussion of the Iranian issue. We assume that in the course of the 
elaboration of the position of the six countries, the opinion of Russia 
will be taken into account, and we can see that our partners are acting 
along these lines, precisely.
    What does this imply for us? This implies that if we elaborate 
common approaches to this difficult problem, we will see to it that our 
joint decisions are fulfilled. This is what we said honestly and 
directly to our Iranian partners. I said it at the meeting with the 
President of the Islamic Republic of Iran in China quite recently.
    True, it is extremely important to adhere to an approach within 
which the countries that are involved in the negotiations would be able 
to elaborate a shared approach to the resolution of the problem, but the 
approach has to be balanced and has to take into account the interests 
of the Iranian people in their desire to develop state-of-the-art, high-
tech industries, including nuclear ones. This has to be done under the 
obligatory requirement that nonproliferation is ensured and the overall 
security situation around the world is improved.

Democracy in Russia

    Q. President Bush, you said that you planned to raise, in a 
respectful way, your concerns about Russian democracy with President 
Putin. How did that conversation go? And I know you've already talked a 
lot about the U.S.-Russian relationship, but I'm wondering if both of 
you could elaborate on that and how the differences of opinion over the 
democracy issue are affecting the relationship.
    President Bush. I thought the discussion was a good discussion. It's 
not the first time that Vladimir and I discussed our governing 
philosophies. I have shared with him my desires for our country, and he 
shared with me his desires for his. And I talked about my desire to 
promote institutional change in parts of the world like Iraq where 
there's a free press and free religion, and I told him that a lot of 
people in our country would hope that Russia would do the same thing.
    I fully understand, however, that there will be a Russian-style 
democracy. I don't expect Russia to look like the United States. As 
Vladimir pointedly reminded me last night, we have a different history, 
different traditions. And I will let him describe to you his way 
forward, but he shared with me some very interesting

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thoughts that I think would surprise some of our citizens.
    Now that I've lured you into the deal here, you know--like, for 
example, how do you promote land reform? So we discussed land reform. 
You know, one of the interesting decisions a government has to make, 
particularly this Government would have to make, is how do you encourage 
private ownership of land further than that which has already happened?
    Anyway, he shared some thoughts with me. Sorry to put--lay the trap 
out there for you--but it was a good discussion. He's a strong man. 
Look, he's willing to listen, but he also explains to me, he doesn't 
want anybody telling him how to run his Government. He was elected. And 
so it was a cordial relationship. But he can speak for himself.
    President Putin. We certainly would not want to have the same kind 
of democracy as they have in Iraq, I will tell you quite honestly. 
[Laughter]
    President Bush. Just wait.
    President Putin. But it is true that we have discussed this issue at 
length, on the initiative of the President of the United States and on 
my own initiative as well. It is true that we assume that nobody knows 
better than us how we can strengthen our own nation. But we know for 
sure that we cannot strengthen our nation without developing democratic 
institutions, and this is the path that we will certainly take. But 
certainly, we will do this by ourselves.
    At the same time, as far as the forum and context in which we 
discussed this last night and earlier today, we believe that this is not 
only acceptable to us to have such discussions with our partners, but I 
personally believe that this is quite useful as well, because when we do 
this in a nonbiased manner, in a friendly manner, in an objective 
manner, when we recognize that the existence of problems in this part of 
the world, when we recognize that problems with democracy are universal 
in their nature--these are not specifically Russian problems, the 
problems of building democracy are universal--and when we honestly and 
openly discuss this, as was the case last night, as was the case earlier 
today, this will always be useful.
    Thank you for your attention. Have a nice day.

Note: The President's news conference began at 12:29 p.m. at the 
International Media Center. In his remarks, President Bush referred to 
Lyudmila Putina, wife of President Putin; Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad 
Regev, Israeli soldiers captured and held captive by militants in 
Lebanon since July 12; Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel; and 
President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority. President Putin 
referred to President Mahmud Ahmadi-nejad of Iran. President Putin spoke 
in Russian, and his remarks were translated by an interpreter.