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Putin, Blair vow to act on terror
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SPECIAL REPORTYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSLONDON, England -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Tony Blair have pledged to increase their joint efforts to combat terrorism. "Russia and the Russian people, like Britain and the British people, know the threat which global terrorism poses. But we also share the same determination not to be defeated by it," Blair told reporters. In an unprecedented move, Blair invited Putin to meet British security officials in the top-security underground meeting room of the civil contingencies committee, known as Cobra. Putin is the first foreign leader to be invited into the Cobra meeting room, which is used by the prime minister to coordinate the response to disasters and emergencies. After the meeting, the two sides issued a joint statement saying they had "resolved to continue to strengthen our partnership, in particular by increasing practical cooperation between our security agencies." Putin also came to London with honors for the British team which used a remote-controlled Scorpio underwater robotic vehicle to free Russia's AS28 submersible in August after it had become entangled in cables in the Pacific. (Full story) The Downing Street meeting came a day after Blair headed the European Union delegation at an EU-Russia summit. (Full story) Pledging to be a reliable energy supplier, Putin had told a news conference Tuesday: "Russia has constantly been augmenting her supply of oil, helping the world economy, including Europe, by constraining prices." Putin had been expected to raise with Blair Russia's objections to Britain's granting of asylum to a top Chechen rebel representative, Akhmed Zakayev, and Russian media tycoon Boris Berezovsky, who fled Russia to avoid an investigation. CNN's European Political Editor Robin Oakley says that relations between Putin and Blair had cooled following these differences, and both sides were keen to improve relations. Amnesty International last week urged EU leaders to take a tough line with Putin, alleging that Russian forces in Chechnya were responsible for "gross human rights violations," including torture and forced confessions. The EU and Russia have long disagreed on human rights. Russia counters Europe's calls for more respect of rights in Chechnya with accusations that new EU members Latvia and Estonia discriminate against their large Russian-speaking minorities. Blair said they had discussed Chechnya but gave no specifics. Copyright 2005 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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