BERLIN (dpa) -Russian President Vladimir Putin has reaffirmed his country’s commitment to the international struggle against terrorism.
President Putin’s comments followed talks in Berlin with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. The German leader, meanwhile, suggested that Russia’s clash with Chechen separatists should be re-evaluated, a possible change in the international view of that conflict. Russia has insisted that Chechen fighters are terrorists, while the West has criticized human rights violations by Russian authorities in Chechnya.
Mr. Putin has already said Russia will support the U.S. campaign against terrorism and is prepared to provide military support for anti-Taliban opposition forces currently fighting in Afghanistan.
He said Russia will share intelligence information with the United States, and is willing to open its airspace for humanitarian aid flights to Afghanistan.
Mr. Putin said Central Asian countries that were formerly part of the Soviet Union may allow the United States to use their airfields.
The Russian president, whose visit to Berlin had been planned before the September 11 attacks in New York and Washington, has also given a foreign policy speech to the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag.
The Russian president’s trip was originally meant to focus on Russia’s financial debt to Germany, trade, and investment. As part of the visit, the Russian and German leaders have also signed cultural cooperation accords.
