Putin says Russia bound to democracy

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia -- President Vladimir Putin of Russia declared yesterday that his nation would never return to totalitarianism, brushing aside worries by President Bush and others that Russia is backsliding on democratic overhauls.

''Russia has made its choice in favor of democracy. This is our final choice, and we have no way back," Putin said after meeting with Bush for more than two hours at a medieval castle in the Slovak capital. But the Russian leader noted that the choice was made ''without any pressure from outside," suggesting Russia did not appreciate Western lobbying to improve conditions for a free press, open financial markets, and share political power.

Bush said he told Putin: ''Strong countries are built by developing strong democracies. I think Vladimir heard me loud and clear."

The remarks about the state of Russian democracy took center stage on the final day of Bush's four-day European swing. Responding to questions from reporters, Putin, whom Bush continued to describe yesterday as a personal friend, said other nations did not fully understand what was happening in Russia and suggested the news from his country had been distorted.

Bush had slammed Russia in a major speech Monday in Brussels, saying the United States and Russia needed to make democratization in that country a high priority. Although Bush did specify his complaints this week, Putin has been criticized by the international community for closing down television stations, punishing political opponents, interfering with private business activity, and removing the right of people to select regional governors by direct election.

Putin compared the latter move to the American political system, calling it ''in essence, a system of the Electoral College, which is used on a national level in the United States." Regional parliaments will elect the governors from a slate of candidates; the president will not appoint them personally, he said.

Putin said Bush had given him ''some ideas" about democratization in their meeting, and that ''some of them will be taken into account in my work. . . . Some other ideas, I will not comment on," he added tersely.

Facing an aggressive Russian press corps, Bush was also forced to defend American democracy, apparently baffling a US leader who has spent much of his trip discussing the importance of building free societies around the world.

In an apparent reference to the USA Patriot Act providing law enforcement with greater surveillance authority, one Russian reporter asked Bush about the ''great powers that have been assumed by the security services" in the United States in which ''the private lives of citizens are now being monitored by the state."

A second reporter asked Bush about ''the violations of the rights of journalists in the United States," including the fact that ''some journalists have been fired."

Bush responded that he had no role in employment of journalists, and said his nation has laws that ''are perfectly explained to people" and subject to judicial scrutiny.

''I live in a country where decisions made by government are wide open and people are able to . . . call me to account," Bush said, as Putin stared impassively ahead.

Trying to showcase their cooperation, the leaders announced that they had agreed on a multipronged strategy to control nuclear proliferation, twining the former Cold War foes in a common fight to avoid nuclear confrontation. The deal includes sharing information on securing nuclear facilities in the United States, Russia, and other nuclear powers.

Bush and Putin also agreed that the two countries would work together to keep shoulder-mounted, antiaircraft missiles out of the hands of terrorists.

Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda of Slovakia, who met with Bush earlier in the day, said in an interview that he had told Bush the best way to foster democracy in Russia was to first help build it in neighboring Ukraine, a former Soviet republic which recently elected a US-friendly leader.

Dzurinda said Slovakia, basking in the international attention, could take a lead in helping Ukraine. ''We should not expect that the United States should solve all problems," Dzurinda said.

Bush and Putin said they expected to continue their good relationship, despite their differences. While Bush has long been a fan of the Russian leader, he also believes that Putin ''is a man who loves a strong hand," or supports strong state controls, said a high-ranking European official who declined to be named.

The two leaders spent more than an hour speaking one-on-one through interpreters, marking the longest such meeting since they met, a senior administration official said. Bush also plans to visit Moscow in May.

Bush enjoyed his warmest reception of his week yesterday, winning enthusiastic applause from thousands of Slovaks, some of whom waited hours in line, who turned out to hear him in Bratislava's Hviezdoslavovo Square. The president encountered protests on Wednesday in Germany, where authorities nearly shut down the city of Mainz in anticipation of anti-Bush demonstrations.

In Brussels earlier in the week, Bush met with European leaders, seeking to repair relationships damaged by the Iraq war. While all the leaders said they had reached a rapprochement, they also acknowledged that they continued to disagree on such matters as whether to lift the arms embargo against China, a move the Bush administration opposes, and whether to force countries to limit greenhouse gas emissions to diminish global warming.

On another outstanding area of disagreement, Bush did make a small but diplomatically significant move on Iran, saying Wednesday that he was open to the idea of using economic incentives to persuade Tehran to abandon its suspected nuclear weapons program.

Previously, Bush has focused on a no-tolerance policy toward Iran, while Europe has encouraged negotiation.

Yesterday afternoon, Slovaks cheered at Bush's recognition of the contributions from Slovakia -- a latecomer to the economic and political changes in Eastern and Central Europe.

A smattering of protesters yelled antiwar slogans and carried signs saying ''Wanted for Crimes Against the Planet." But overall, the president faced a friendly audience.

''Slovaks know the horror of tyranny, so you're working to bring hope of freedom to people who have not known it," Bush told the crowd, referring to Slovakia's contribution of soldiers and election observers in Iraq, Kosovo, and Ukraine.

The president appeared intent this week on abandoning the distinction between ''old Europe" -- nations like Germany and France that opposed the war -- and ''new Europe" -- countries like Slovakia that supported the invasion.

In his speech yesterday, Bush likened the transition in Iraq to the Slovaks' fight to free themselves from Soviet control.

''As you watched jubilant Iraqis dancing on the streets last month, holding up their ink-stained fingers, you remembered velvet days," Bush said, referring to the former Czechoslovakia's Velvet Revolution 16 years ago.

''For the Iraqi people, this is their 1989, and they will always remember who stood with them in their quest for freedom," he said.