U.S. President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held Thursday an eye-catching meeting, which was aimed to reduce high tension between the two sides over the U.S. plan to deploy a missile defense shield in eastern Europe.

Earlier, Bush said he was "looking forward" to his meeting with Putin.

Speaking to reporters after his talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bush said he would try to convince Putin that the missile defense system is aimed at "a rogue regime" -- not Russia.

Source: Xinhua