Bush to ask Putin's help in pressuring Iran

President George W. Bush, hosting Vladimir Putin at his family's estate on Maine's rocky coast, will seek to revive a friendship with the Russian president amid tensions that have evoked comparisons to the Cold War.

Arriving on Sunday in picturesque Kennebunkport, Putin will dine in the evening with the Bush family at Walker's Point, the summer home of Bush's father, former President George Bush.

Bush and Putin will hold a policy session on Monday and may take in some fishing.

U.S. and Russian officials have described the Kennebunkport meeting as informal and emphasized that big announcements are unlikely on some of the difficult issues, such as a proposed U.S. missile shield in Europe and independence for Kosovo.

"One should not expect any breakthroughs to be made or any major decisions to be announced or documents signed," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

"The point of the meeting is to explain to each other mutual concerns and positions on certain questions."

Iran is one topic the White House is eager to raise. Bush plans to try to enlist Putin's support for wider economic sanctions aimed at pressuring Tehran over its nuclear program.

A senior U.S. official said there has been "an increasing convergence in U.S.-Russian views" on Iran's nuclear program.

"I do think we see the threat very much the same," the official told reporters last week, adding there would be discussion of a new U.N. Security Council resolution.

Major Western countries suspect Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons. Tehran insists its nuclear program is aimed only at producing electricity.

PROTESTERS GATHER

Ahead of Putin's arrival, anti-war protesters were beginning to gather on Sunday morning at Kennebunkport's oceanfront Village Green park as they prepared for a march toward a police checkpoint near the Bush family compound.

The main focus was against the Iraq war, though some demonstrators were also calling for the impeachment of Bush and U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney.

Protesters, some with vehicles festooned with American flags and peace signs, hoped to take advantage of blanket media coverage of Putin's visit to gain exposure for their causes.

"We want to show that Americans are fed up with this war and with this administration," said Harvey Flashen, 54, of the Kennebunks Peace Department, one of the event's sponsors.

Putin's invitation to the century-old Walker's Point estate marks the first time Bush will host a foreign leader there.

The stone-and-shingle home built by Bush's great grandfather holds boyhood memories for him, though in the summertime he usually prefers the dusty canyons and searing heat of his Texas ranch over chillier Maine.

The presence of Bush's father lends extra prestige to Putin's visit.

Foreign policy analysts said it underscored the U.S. seriousness about mending ties with Russia, which have been frayed by the U.S. missile shield plan, the Iraq war, U.S. concerns about human rights in Russia and other issues.

Bush famously said in 2001 he trusted Putin because he had gotten "a sense of his soul."

Some recent harsh rhetoric from Putin has fueled concerns in Washington, including a comment in which he seemed to compare U.S. foreign policy to that of the Third Reich.

Peskov, the Putin spokesman, brushed aside suggestions there were Cold War overtones in the differences of opinion.

"The fact that Putin has been invited to Walker's Point shows better than anything else that the presidents enjoy wonderful personal relations, which are the best guarantee that they can handle sincerely most sensitive issues," Peskov said.

(Additional reporting by Oleg Shchedrov and Matt Spetalnick)