Putin Greets Blair's Anti-terror Statement

President Vladimir Putin is enthusiastic about an anti-terror statement Prime Minister Tony Blair made at an extraordinary session of the British Parliament this morning, said the Russian President as he was opening a bilateral summit now underway in the Kremlin. Mr. Putin shares essential points of Mr. Blair's parliamentary statement, he said. The President highly appreciates the current level and scope of Russo-British contacts. The mere fact of tonight's emergency talks on top global priorities clearly reflects the state of those contacts, he remarked. Mr. Blair, in his turn, gratefully highlighted President Putin's efforts to cement the world for an anti-terror crusade.