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Bush Will Remind Putin of Soviet Occupations NewsMax.com WiresVILNIUS, Lithuania -- President Bush said he will remind Russian President Vladimir Putin about the Soviet occupation of the Baltics when they meet in Moscow for the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. The May 9 holiday, Victory Day, is revered by the Russians as an unequivocal celebration of the Soviet triumph over Nazi Germany, while for residents of the Baltic countries the end of the war led to decades of harsh rule by Moscow. Story Continues Below In excerpts of an interview to be broadcast Thursday, Bush told Lithuanian state television that he will stress to the Russian leader that the end of the war did not bring freedom for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. "Yes, of course I'll remind him of that," Bush said, adding that he told Putin during their last meeting in Slovakia that the end of World War II was not a day of celebration for the Baltics. The U.S. president is to visit Latvia on Friday ahead of his trip to Moscow. He will meet with his Baltic counterparts, two of whom have declined invitations to the Moscow celebrations because of Russia's unwillingness to denounce the Soviet annexation of their countries. Bush said he understood Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus' decision to not attend the celebrations and added he hopes Russia will maintain good relations with its Baltic neighbors. "It really is in Russia's interests to have free countries and democracies on her border," Bush said. Russia denied Thursday that it illegally annexed the Baltic nations in 1940. "One cannot use the term 'occupation' to describe those historical events," said Sergei Yastrzhembsky, Russia's point man on relations with the European Union. "At that time, the troop deployment took place on an agreed basis and with the clearly expressed agreement of the existing authorities in the Baltic republics," Yastrzhembsky said in Moscow. Lithuanian state television said Bush praised Lithuania for its support in bringing Ukraine on a path to democracy and said he expects the Baltic country to help ensure free elections in neighboring Belarus. Bush spoke to television networks from the three Baltic countries on Wednesday in Washington. The full interviews were scheduled to be aired later Thursday.
© 2005 The Associated Press
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