Bush and Merkel hold talks on Iran
US president George Bush met German Chancellor Angela Merkel today for talks largely focused on their shared goal of keeping Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
Mr Bush wants to resolve the nuclear stand-off with Tehran before his presidency ends.
This week he will be asking European leaders for solidarity against Iran and embrace tougher sanctions if the country does not stop its uranium enrichment program.
Global warming, Afghanistan and relations with Russia also were on the agenda at Mr Bush’s meeting with Ms Merkel at Schloss Meseberg, the German government’s main guesthouse.
After a countryside bike ride that seemed to invigorate Mr Bush, he and Ms Merkel had breakfast and then took a camera-ready stroll through the formal, manicured gardens next to the cream-coloured castle.
Mr Bush seemed to want to stay as far as possible from the line of media, steering Ms Merkel down a path that took them away. But minutes later, Ms Merkel steered them back and the two chatted briefly with reporters before moving inside.
The two were also all smiles when the president arrived by helicopter last night for a dinner that opened their talks. They were to end their discussions over lunch, squeezing in a news conference in the palace’s cobblestone courtyard.
Mr Bush is close with Ms Merkel, and she has visited his Texas ranch.
Their relationship hit a bump at a Nato summit in Romania in April when they disagreed over whether to give Georgia and Ukraine a path to membership in the alliance.
On Iran, Europe wants to delay stiffer sanctions until after the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, visits Tehran to present a package of incentives in exchange for stopping its enrichment programme.
The offer, an updated version of one that Iran ignored a few years ago, was developed by the United States, along with Germany, Britain, France, Russia and China.
Iran claims its nuclear program is for generating electricity, not bombs.
