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(10 Oct 2002) 1. Tony Blair and Cherie greet Vladimir Putin and Lyudmila 2. Blairs and Putins smile and chat 3. Tony Blair and Vladimir Putin walk inside 4. Cherie and Lyudmila enter room, followed by husbands 5. Tony Blair, Cherie and Vladimir Putin 6. Close up Tony Blair 7. Tony Blair, Cherie, and Vladimir Putin STORYLINE: British Prime Minister Tony Blair carried a potentially strong hand into talks on Iraq with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, amid signs the Kremlin may be softening its opposition as the United States and Britain push for tough action. Blair and his wife Cherie flew to Moscow under a wet snow and then arrived by helicopter at Zavidovo, a presidential residence in the countryside north of the capital. Although Russia continues to oppose military action against Iraq, it has dropped its flat-out rejection of calls for a new U.N. Security Council resolution that would lay out strict terms for Iraqi cooperation with weapons inspectors, as urged by the United States and Britain. Throughout the growing crisis, Russian officials have notably avoided statements supporting Saddam Hussein, indicating that the Kremlin's stance is dictated primarily by the desire to protect Russia's interests in Iraq - and that, say analysts, is where Blair can be influential. Blair has cultivated personal relations with Putin, becoming the first Western leader to visit after Putin was named acting president on Dec. 31, 1999. Putin in turn made Britain his first foreign destination after being elected in March 2000. Find out more about AP Archive: Twitter: Facebook: Instagram: You can license this story through AP Archive:
