Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday held telephone talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on humanitarian programs in Iraq, the Kremlin said.
Putin and Blair welcomed the decision by the UN Security Council to resume the Oil-for-Food program and stressed their common stand that the United Nations should play a key role in international affairs, said the Kremlin press service.
And during Putin and Berlusconi's talks, which also focused on humanitarian topics, the two leaders agreed that their similar stands on many aspects of the Iraq crisis paved way for their constructive cooperation, the service said.
Putin and Blair also exchanged views about bilateral cooperation, as well as preparations for Putin's state visit to Britain scheduled for June 2003.
(Xinhua News Agency March 31, 2003)
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