First, I would say that President Bush attaches a great deal of importance to the G8 summit in St Petersburg. He looks forward very much to coming, and he is determined to do everything he can to help make this a success. The formal agenda items for the summit - energy security, health and education - are extremely important not only for Russia and the United States but for all the members of the G8 and the entire international community. And we look forward very much to using the St Petersburg summit to make progress in each of those areas. And it is also a very good opportunity to discuss other issues of immediate importance, whether Iran or North Korea, as is natural at G8 summits.

That goes into preparations for the summit, and a number of discussions at the expert level, at the level beneath the leaders, leading up to the summit. And so in areas like energy, and health, and education, there are drafts that are prepared for the leaders to consider at the summit. These are obviously documents that only the leaders themselves can approve, these are their decisions. And the other thing I would say is that I think we have been impressed on the American side with the professionalism with which the Russian side has approached preparations for the summit. We began our consultations with Russia even before it formally assumed the chairmanship of the G8 in January. And as I said, we have had a lot of experience in hosting G8 summits ourselves in the past, and we know it is not an easy process. But, as I said, I think the professional preparations for the summit have been very impressive.

I think there are a number of subjects that inevitably arise when you have G8 leaders meeting. And there also are two presidents who will have an opportunity to discuss when they meet at the bilateral summit just before the G8 summit in St Petersburg. Our presidents have a very good personal relationship, and they talk about a whole range of issues, including sometimes areas in which we are at difference. And those kind of issues can include concerns that Americans have expressed in the past about overcentralization of power in Russia, about the future of civil society in Russia, but they can also include some areas of strong bilateral interest such as the WTO and how we can strengthen our economic relations, so I think those subjects are clearly going to be very important agenda items in the bilateral summit between the presidents. The only thing I would add is that when the (US) president raises questions of future of civil society, for example, in Russia, Americans do not do it with a view towards pretending to have a monopoly on wisdom on these kind of questions. I know Americans sometimes have a habit of preaching and lecturing to others. But my message today is just a very simple one. And that is that we are proud of the system of open economic and political institutions that we have built over more than 200 years in our country. It's not perfect, and we have made lots of mistakes along the way, in fact we make mistakes today sometimes. But it is a system that has worked for us, and we think it can work for others as they seek to wrestle with the same kind of challenges.

Russia-US relations

I think it's absolutely true that there has been a fair amount of frustration and disappointment about our bilateral relationship that has been voiced in both capitals, in Moscow as well as in Washington. I think the truth is that we still have a strong and very important relationship, in which we have a lot more to gain by working together than we do by working apart. It does not mean we are going to agree on everything. It is natural for us to have differences sometimes. Russia is not the same place that I knew when I last lived and worked here 10 years ago. There has been quite dramatic economic growth and that is a very good thing for Russia and for the rest of the world. And so both the United States and Russia, I think, have to adjust to what has changed in the last 10 years. But I think we also have to keep a careful eye on the common ground between us and not let differences that arise distract us from the importance of building on that common ground.

Making political predictions is very difficult either in Russia or in America. You are absolutely right, 2008 is a very important date in both our political systems. But my own sense is that if you look at our relationship, there is going to be a great deal of continuity, I think, as you look beyond 2008. And that is based on the reality that, as I said before, I think we have a great deal more to gain by working together in most areas around the world than we do by competing. 2008 is not going to change the fact that we both have an interest in fighting against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Nor is it going to change the reality that we both have a great deal to gain by working together in energy cooperation. Or in expanding trade and investment more generally.

Russia's WTO prospects

Both sides, the United States and Russia, are working very hard to try to conclude a bilateral agreement on Russia's accession to the WTO. Our negotiators are in almost constant contact these days. The gaps between us are truly very narrow right now. Russia for example has taken some important strides in the direction of fighting against the piracy of intellectual property rights. And it has done that, clearly, as President Putin has emphasized, in Russia's own self interest, not as a favour to the WTO or to the Americans or anyone else. So I think we are very close to a bilateral agreement. I hope that it will be concluded just as quickly as possible. I think that is very much in the interests of both Russia and America.

Energy security

Obviously the question of energy security is an enormously important one for the future of the global economy. Partnership is sometimes an overused term amongst diplomats, but I think when you look at Russia, the United States and energy, it really does apply in a very important way. For the simple reason that Russia today is the world's biggest producer of oil and gas, the United States is the world's biggest consumer. Russia today is a hugely important player in the global energy market. The only question really before us and before Russia is how is Russia going to take advantage of that opportunity and overcome some challenges which exist. In other words, how do you get that gas and oil out of the ground and how do you move it into the world market. Russia has a great deal of financial capital as well as know-how that it can employ to accomplish that, but the United States, I think, can also provide additional investment and additional technological know-how to help, whether it is on projects like Shtokman - the liquefied natural gas project - or in Sakhalin.

And the last thing I would say is that I think the St Petersburg summit provides an excellent opportunity for Russia to demonstrate to the world its own vision of its plans to invest in infrastructure, to create an investment climate which is going to be attractive to investors, both domestic and foreign, its plans for building more pipelines of the sort that the Russian government has already discussed, and as a way of demonstrating its own commitment to be a reliable energy partner. Certainly the United States also has an interest in working with Russia in all those areas.

The United States does have a strong interest in predictable, transparent investment regimes. It has an interest in diversification in terms of transit routes. It has an interest in reliance on market principles in order to help shape the global energy market. I think that that gives us a lot of common ground on which to work with Russia, as well as with Europe. I understand that energy security needs to be a two-way street. And I happen to believe that Russia's interest in downstream acquisitions and in integrating itself more and more into the global energy market is a good thing for Russia, as well as a good thing for the rest of, I suppose, producers and consumers.

US view of Russia's relationship with Europe

We have discussed certainly with European partners, as well as with our Russian partners, the broader question of the kind of principles that apply to our energy relationships. There has been discussion, I know, between the European Union and Russia over the question of the Energy Charter. The United States today is not a party  to the Energy Charter. But I think there are some important principles that unite all of us. And we have already talked about a number of them. So I think that what is going to emerge from the St Petersburg summit on energy issues is going to be a reaffirmation of our broad commitment to those principles. And I hope that what it will also produce is practical progress in terms of the kind of commercial partnerships that serve all of our interests.