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Blair praises Putin as 'impressive man'

LONDON; British Prime Minister Tony Blair praised Russia's Acting President Vladimir Putin as an "impressive" man with a clear vision of where he wants to take his country.

Blair told reporters on his flight back to London late on Saturday after a day of talks in St Petersburg that he believed the former spy, who remains a relatively unknown figure internationally after his swift rise to prominence, was a "pretty quick learner".

"He was highly intelligent and with a focused view of what he wants to achieve in Russia," he told BBC Television.

Blair is the first Western leader to travel to Russia to meet Putin, who is favourite to win presidential elections in two weeks, and officials say the British prime minister will brief other world leaders on his first impressions.

Blair, who likes to portray his own government as a force for modernisation, said he saw similarities with Putin, who like Blair is in his late 40s and a former law student.

"He wants to modernise his country. He wants to build it for the future. He wants to take it into the 21st century. So there's a lot of things, perhaps, we have in common," Blair said in a separate interview with Sky Television.

Both leaders exchanged warm words at a news conference midway through their talks, although Putin, whose popularity stems from his uncompromising stance on Russia's campaign in Chechnya, reiterated his staunch defence of the military offensive there.

Blair, who avoided any public criticism of Russia's actions in the province, said he believed that after his talks Russia would increase access for international organisations who want to investigate reports of atrocities by Russian troops in the province.

"I emphasised the importance for the international community of having those allegations of human rights violations properly investigated," Blair said.

But he said there was no contradiction between Putin's robust nationalism and attempts to strengthen democracy.

"Given what Russia's been through and given the economic task of reconstruction, it's not surprising he believes in a Russia which is ordered and strong but also democratic and liberal too," he sad.

Blair said Putin appeared to have set two priorities for himself -- reforming Russia's economy so it could welcome international investment, and opening up political relations with the outside world and forming strategic alliances.

Blair and his wife, Cherie, spent a day in St Petersburg as guests of Putin, rounding off their visit on Saturday night with a visit to the premier of a production of Sergei Prokofiev's War and Peace, a stirring tale of Russian resistance in wartime.-Reuters