Bush Speech Chides Russia

President Bush on Monday issued a blunt warning to Russia, saying that it “must renew a commitment to democracy and the rule of law” if it is to join the European and transatlantic communities.

Bush’s admonition to Moscow came during the keynote address of his four-day, fence-mending trip to Europe, in which he called for “a new era of transatlantic unity.” Although mostly conciliatory, the president’s half-hour speech used strong language to lay out his foreign policy priorities, including a plan to help resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and to promote democracy in the Middle East.

Bush chided allies Saudi Arabia and Egypt, saying that the U.S. and Europe “expect higher standards” from them on democratic rule. He also renewed his calls for Syria to withdraw its troops from Lebanon and for Iran to abandon what Washington says is a nuclear weapons program.

The president’s strong rhetoric on Russia came as a surprise because excerpts of his speech released by the White House on Sunday night did not include criticism of Moscow.

Bush has come under rising pressure from key U.S. lawmakers to adopt a tougher stance toward the Kremlin because of Russian President Vladimir V. Putin’s increasingly authoritarian grip on the country’s political and economic sectors.

Putin has moved to centralize power by imposing more control over the broadcast media, reining in influential businessmen and promoting a plan to replace elected regional governors with Kremlin appointees.

Last week, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) introduced a resolution calling on Bush to work on suspending Russia’s membership in the Group of 8 leading industrial nations until Putin reverses course. Russia is scheduled to host the G-8 summit in 2006.

In his speech, Bush did not mention the G-8, but said the U.S. had supported Russia’s membership in the World Trade Organization “because meeting WTO standards will strengthen the gains in freedom and prosperity in that country.”

The president added: “Yet, for Russia to make progress as a European nation, the Russian government must renew a commitment to democracy and the rule of law. We recognize that reform will not happen overnight. We must always remind Russia, however, that our alliance stands for a free press, a vital opposition, the sharing of power and rule of law. And the United States and all European countries should place democratic reform at the heart of their dialogue with Russia.”

At a November meeting in Santiago, Chile, Bush questioned Putin about his centralization of power. The Russian president’s reply consisted of “a very long and detailed explanation” that reached “deep into Russian history,” according to a senior administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Bush’s remarks Monday took on added significance because he is scheduled to meet with Putin on Thursday in Bratislava, Slovakia.

Michael McFaul, an expert on Russia at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, lauded the president’s remarks about Putin’s actions. Bush “is speaking about Russia’s democratic erosion in public. That’s a change from past practice,” he said.

Some foreign policy experts believe that Bush will publicly prod Putin to make the Russian government more democratic, but will not risk damaging a relationship that is key to his top national security goals.

“Bush has to chastise Putin for the backsliding on democracy, and I see this as putting down his first marker that what’s gone on will not go unnoticed,” said Charles A. Kupchan, director of European studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. “Despite his stated commitment to the spread of democracy, Bush will not be prepared to significantly damage ties to Moscow on this issue.”

Bush ended his first full day in the Belgian capital by sharing dinner with French President Jacques Chirac, a vocal critic of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. During a photo opportunity before the meal at the residence of Tom C. Korologos, the U.S. ambassador to Belgium, Bush and Chirac projected a let-bygones-be-bygones demeanor.

“Every time I meet with Jacques he’s got good advice,” Bush said.

“It always is a great pleasure to meet with President Bush,” Chirac said. The dispute over Iraq, he added, “in no way affects or in no way undermines the bedrock of our relations -- namely, our common values and our common vision.”

Still, there appeared to be a limit to their friendly relations. When a reporter asked whether Bush would extend to Chirac an invitation to his ranch near Crawford, Texas, Bush dodged the question, quipping: “I’m looking for a good cowboy.”

Bush is scheduled to spend much of today meeting and dining with leaders of NATO and the European Union.

About 300 leaders of Europe’s business, academic and diplomatic communities attended Bush’s address Monday, held in an opulent banquet hall. They gave the president a standing ovation when he was introduced and after his speech.

Outside, about 4,000 protesters calling themselves the “Stop Bush” group waved placards and hurled insults at the president.

“We are here tonight because we have major disagreements with George Bush’s foreign policy,” said Yonnec Polet, an organizer of the demonstration. “He causes a lot of problems to environment policies, human rights. We think about the Kyoto Protocol, the Abu Ghraib jail, the non-ratification of the U.S.A. to the [International Criminal Court] and, of course, the Guantanamo detention center.”

In his speech, Bush pledged America’s and Europe’s “moral commitment” to the Middle East peace process, saying that a settlement was “now within reach.”

“Arab states must end incitement in their own media, cut off public and private funding for terrorism, stop their support for extremist education and establish normal relations with Israel,” the president said. “Palestinian leaders must confront and dismantle terrorist groups, fight corruption, encourage free enterprise and rest true authority with the people.

“A successful Palestinian democracy should be Israel’s top goal,” he added. “So Israel must freeze settlement activity, help Palestinians build a thriving economy and ensure that a new Palestinian state is truly viable, with contiguous territory on the West Bank. A state of scattered territories will not work.”

In lecturing other countries about their shortcomings on democracy and human rights, Bush sought to soften his tone by mentioning the U.S. experience.

“Europe and America should not expect or demand that reforms come all at once; that didn’t happen in our own history,” he said. “My own country took many years to include minorities and women in the full promise of America. And that struggle hasn’t ended.”

Times staff writers Achrene Sicakyuz in Brussels and Paul Richter in Washington contributed to this report.