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Russia to host Middle East crisis talks at G8 summit
Alexander Demianchuk/Reuters
The national flags of the G8 countries and the flag of the European Union fly near a logo of the G8 summit in St Petersburg July 13, 2006.
By Kevin McElderry
AFP
SAINT PETERSBURG
Petroleumworld.com 07 15 06Russia called emergency talks here Friday on Israel's offensive in Lebanon as US President George W. Bush flew in for a summit of G8 leaders dominated by the spiralling Middle East crisis.
The US leader arrived for face-to-face talks with host President Vladimir Putin a day ahead of the annual gathering of leaders of the world's wealthiest nations in the Kremlin chief's home city of Saint Petersburg.
As most world powers lined up against the ferocity of Israel's assault, the Russian foreign ministry said it had put the crisis on the official agenda.
Putin said "all sides implicated in this conflict should immediately stop military action," Interfax news agency reported. He said he would discuss the conflict Friday with Bush and over the weekend with the other G8 leaders.
At least 60 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israeli forces rolled over the border after the capture earlier this week of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah militants.
The Jewish state is pressing a simultaneous offensive in the Gaza Strip to retrieve a soldier abducted there nearly three weeks ago and which has so far left at least 76 Palestinians and one Israeli soldier dead.
The escalation has sparked fears of war, sent oil prices shooting to record levels and exposed divisions between Europe and the United States.
In London, British Prime Minister Tony Blair called the crisis "absolutely tragic" and urged a concerted push to prevent a regional war, while his fellow G8 leader French President Jacques Chirac branded Israel's response "totally disproportionate."
But while European Union nations have called on Israel to keep its actions "proportionate," Bush's remarks -- echoed to an extent by Canada -- have been more supportive of Washington's closest regional ally.
Bush has called for restraint from Israel, saying it has a right to defend itself but urging it not to undermine Lebanon's fragile government. Washington separately vetoed a UN resolution demanding an end to the military operations in Gaza.
Russia, for its part, has slammed Israel's "disproportionate use of force" against Lebanon and the Palestinian territories.
The G8 leaders -- from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan as well as Russia and the United States -- will meet amid tight security.
Airspace is being closed to commercial traffic from 1600 GMT Friday until 1600 GMT Monday, sea and river access has been blocked and air force jets are patrolling overhead, with thousands of extra security forces on the streets.
Bush's first stop here after laying a wreath at a World War II memorial to the defenders of what was then called Leningrad was to meet representatives of non-governmental organisations and human rights groups, who often complain of harassment by authorities.
He has promised to raise concerns over the progress of democratic reform in Russia, an issue that has already drawn a sharp response from Putin.
Later Friday Bush and his wife Laura were to have dinner with Putin at the refurbished Konstantin Palace.
On other fronts, he is trying to persuade Russia and China to sign up to a UN resolution that threatens tough action against North Korea after it fired seven missiles.
Washington is also pressing for measures to deal with Iran, which it fears is hiding a nuclear weapons development programme under the guise of civilian atomic work.
World powers agreed earlier this week to send their concerns back to the UN Security Council with an implicit threat of UN sanctions, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov later said talk of sanctions was "hypothetical."
Bush and Putin could announce a deal with Washington that would clear the way for Russia to join the World Trade Organization (WTO), which sets global trade rules.
Energy-rich Russia is currently the only major power operating outside the WTO. Agreement on membership would be a major success for Putin, and serve to confirm Russia's rising status as a global economic powerhouse.
US and Russian negotiators were locked in talks to overcome what a US trade official said were "important" differences, although Russian officials seemed more optimistic.
AFP 14 1323 GMT 07 06
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