Bush and Putin to hold summit soon: Kasyanov

Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet with President George Bush in the near future, making up a summit that was cancelled due to the Chechen hostage crisis in Moscow, Russian Prime Minister Mihkail Kasyanov said.

"It is expected that in the nearest future, a meeting will take place between President Putin and Bush," Kasyanov said on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum here.

Kasyanov refused to confirm, however, when or where such a meeting might take place.

Bush and Putin had been due to hold their first summit here since May, with a strong disagreement between the two sides over the best way to disarm Iraq high on the agenda.

The Chechen hostage crisis ended after three days in a bloody pre-dawn assault on a Moscow theater by Russian forces. The raid left some 90 hostages and 50 of their Chechen captors dead.

Kasyanov spoke to Bush briefly on Saturday but did not hold official bilateral talks, Russian officials said.