U.S., Russia Make Up, Plan Summit

Relations between the United States and Russia rebounded Thursday, just three weeks after each ordered out suspected spies from the other side, as the two governments announced plans for the first summit between Presidents Bush and Vladimir V. Putin.

The meeting will be held soon and no later than the July summit in Italy of the Group of 8 industrialized nations, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell said after breakfast talks here with Foreign Minister Igor S. Ivanov.

“Both presidents are anxious to see this meeting take place as soon as possible,” Powell said.

His statement indicated a noticeable shift in attitude. The Bush administration has kept the Russians at arm’s length since coming into office Jan. 20, in effect demoting Moscow’s standing in the U.S. government’s foreign policy agenda.

The U.S. and Russia also announced several joint initiatives, exchanges between Cabinet officials, bilateral meetings of lawmakers and an intensive dialogue on their disparate visions of strategic stability, an issue that includes the controversial proposed U.S. national missile defense system.

It was almost as if the spy flap never happened, even though the biggest part of it has yet to play out. By July 1, more than 40 diplomatic personnel from each nation must leave embassies in Washington and Moscow, following four each who were asked to leave last month.

Often referring to his Russian counterpart by his first name, Powell said that the two nations had “moved on” from the incident, which was sparked by the discovery that a senior U.S. counterintelligence official within the FBI allegedly was spying for Russia. Robert Philip Hanssen had allegedly been an agent for Moscow since 1985, and U.S. officials have called him one of the most devastating Russian moles ever to operate inside the U.S. intelligence community.

“By having today’s talks, I think we have clearly demonstrated that we are both interested in turning this page,” Ivanov said. “We have strong interests in building constructive and productive mutual relations.”

The diplomatic chumminess despite deep ongoing differences was striking, particularly coming on the heels of an 11-day standoff between the U.S. and China that strained a major American diplomatic relationship.

To strengthen ties between the U.S. and Russia, Powell invited Ivanov to spend time with Congress when the Russian visits Washington next month. In turn, Powell said he looked forward to speaking to the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament.

The comfort level reached here was reflected when Powell also offered Ivanov an inside look at one special aspect of legislative power. “I suggested to the minister that perhaps we should let him go through a confirmation hearing so he can get the full sense of what the American Congress is all about,” Powell said.

America’s top diplomat said he had already urged his colleagues in the Bush Cabinet to begin talks with their counterparts in Russia. Treasury and commerce secretaries have begun discussions, he said.

Deputy Secretary of State Richard L. Armitage will represent the Bush administration in talks with Russia on Afghanistan, the war-ravaged country where during the 1980s the U.S. and the former Soviet Union had their last face-off. Washington and Moscow are cooperating in trying to force the ruling Taliban government to end its support of Islamic extremists, including Saudi militant Osama bin Laden.

The two nations also issued a joint statement on the escalating clashes in the Middle East, calling on Israelis and Palestinians to “take parallel and reciprocal steps to reduce the violence, calm the situation and create an environment in which both sides can find a way forward.”

Differences are still deep however. Russia’s arms sales to Iran are a particular American concern, while U.S. meetings with leaders from the separatist Russian republic of Chechnya and plans for a national missile shield deeply worry Moscow. All three issues were the subject of one-on-one discussions between the two diplomats.

But the tone has distinctly shifted. Pressed on Iran and Chechnya, Ivanov told reporters, “We pay attention to the concerns which are raised by the U.S. side, and we are ready to pursue the dialogue and discussions on all the issues.”