President Bush in France and Russia

Several thousand people marched through central Paris to protest against President Bush's two-day visit to France. There were cries "Bush, you are the terrorist," and some American flags were burned. Yet the visit was a success. Bush and French President Jacques Chirac agreed to press the war against terrorists on many fronts, though it remained unclear whether these included Iraq. When discussing Iraq, Bush said his position remained unchanged — he regards Saddam Hussein as a serious threat. But he added: "I have no war plans on my desk."

However, Bush discussed his desire to expand the war on terrorism beyond Afghanistan with Chirac and praised France as a "decisive ally" for helping to hunt down suspected terrorists and sharing intelligence. Chirac responded by urging other world leaders to pay attention to terrorism and show determination to eradicate it.

While in Paris, Bush urged Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf to do more to end acts of terror in Indian sections of disputed Kashmir. They worried him more than the recent two missile tests Pakistan conducted. He wanted Musharraf to show results "in terms of stopping people from crossing the Line of Control." An attack last week killed 34 people on the Indian side of the line. These were clear signs that the Americans are disturbed by Musharraf's reluctance to order and implement effective steps to keep Pakistani militants on their side of the Line of Control. If he does not take action soon, he will be risking the loss of Washington's support for his regime.

The two presidents also discussed Bush's visit to Russia and the growing ties between Russia and NATO. Asked about Russia's nuclear assistance to Iran, Bush repeated the concerns he had expressed during his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who had suggested the possibility of inspectors examining the Iranian nuclear plant Russia is helping to build in Bushhere to verify it would not be used to make weapons. Bush agreed to think this proposal over.