George Bush senior arrives in Saint Petersburg

Former US President George Bush arrived in Saint Petersburg yesterday with his wife Barbara, former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger and former mayor of New York Rudolph Giuliani. As a Rosbalt correspondent reports, the visit to Saint Petersburg is a private one and the former US president has not planned any official engagements.

The couple plan to visit the US consulate and see the city's sights. They will visit the fountains of Peterhof, the Yekaterina palace in Pushkin, the Yusupov palace and they will also visit the Piskaryovsky cemetery to pay their respects to the victims of the Leningrad blockade. In addition, the famous couple will be treated to a private evening of ballet in the Mariinsky Theatre.

After visiting Saint Petersburg Mr and Mrs Bush will travel to Sochi to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and then to Moscow where they will meet former president of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev.