U.S. national security adviser Condoleezza Rice met briefly in the Kremlin on 7 April with President Vladimir Putin. Rice reportedly conveyed to Putin a message from U.S. President George W. Bush in which Bush expressed his desire for the further development of bilateral relations. The purpose of Rice\'s visit was to coordinate the U.S. and Russian positions as the U.S.-led military operation against the regime of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein enters its final phase. Although there was no official statement concerning the topics discussed during Rice\'s meetings with Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, and other senior officials, NTV reported that her most important meeting was with presidential administration head Aleksandr Voloshin. Washington believes that Voloshin, who shuns publicity, was the main force behind Putin\'s efforts to develop closer relations with the United States following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks there, NTV reported. Voloshin traveled to Washington shortly before the beginning of the military operation in Iraq, where he was received at the White House and reportedly presented with some tempting economic proposals. The channel further commented that Rice\'s visit could be a response to Putin\'s comments that Russia does not want to see U.S. setbacks in Iraq and that Rice intended to confirm the offers made to Voloshin in Washington and to attempt to restore the amicable personal relations established by Bush and Putin before the Iraq crisis. (RFE/RL)