Putin keeps Merkel waiting in Milan
Slovakian Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak (center) is welcomed by Italian Priemier Matteo Renzi (left) and EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, at the 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. (AP Photo/Daniel Dal Zennaro, Pool)
Putin to meet with Western leaders on Ukraine
EDS NOTE NUDITY - Inna Shevchenko, a member of the Ukrainian feminist protest group FEMEN, stages a protest covered with mock blood in front of the Duomo gothic cathedral in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. The 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) will take place in Milan, Italy on Thursday 16 and Friday 17 October, 2014, under the theme "Responsible Partnership for Sustainable Growth and Security". (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Putin to meet with Western leaders on Ukraine
Police officers preside a demonstration against Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina, in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. The 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) opens in Milan, Italy on Thursday under the theme "Responsible Partnership for Sustainable Growth and Security". (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Putin keeps Merkel waiting in Milan
Italian Premier Matteo Renzi, left, welcomes Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang, at the 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. (AP Photo/Daniel Dal Zennaro, Pool)
Putin keeps Merkel waiting in Milan
Ukranian President Petro Poroshenko arrives to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. Russian President Vladimir Putin is mounting a diplomatic blitz on the sidelines of a summit of European and Asian leaders in a bid to escape Russia's worst crisis with the West since the Cold War. Putin on Friday will discuss Ukraine over breakfast with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and key European leaders on the sidelines of the 10th ASEM summit in Milan. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she expects to discuss a Ukraine cease-fire deal signed last month, which has reduced hostilities but failed to stop all fighting. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Putin keeps Merkel waiting in Milan
German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives at a Milan's hotel, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. Russian President Vladimir Putin is mounting a diplomatic blitz on the sidelines of a summit of European and Asian leaders in a bid to escape Russia's worst crisis with the West since the Cold War. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she expects to discuss a Ukraine cease-fire deal signed last month, which has reduced hostilities but failed to stop all fighting. "It is above all Russia's task to say clearly that the Minsk plan is really respected," Merkel said as she arrived for the summit. "Unfortunately, there are still very, very big shortcomings. But it is important to seek dialogue here." (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Putin keeps Merkel waiting in Milan
Members of the Serbian army march under heavy rain during a military parade in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. Waving Russian and Serbian flags and displaying banners “Thank You Russia,” tens of thousands came to see the parade in Belgrade attended by Vladimir Putin, which marked the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Serbian capital from the Nazi German occupation by the Red Army and Communist Yugoslav Partisans. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
Putin keeps Merkel waiting in Milan
Serbian president, Tomislav Nikolic, right, helps his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, center, to put on a jacket during a downpour at a military parade in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. Greeted by enthusiastic chants of “Putin! Putin!,” Vladimir Putin attended a military parade Thursday in Slavic ally Serbia, where he held talks on economic issues, including on the South Stream gas pipeline opposed by the European Union. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
Putin to meet with Western leaders on Ukraine
EDS NOTE NUDITY - Inna Shevchenko, left, a member of the Ukrainian feminist protest group FEMEN, and another unidentified activist are about to throw on themselves mock blood as a protest in front of the Duomo gothic cathedral in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. The 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) will take place in Milan, Italy on Thursday 16 and Friday 17 October, 2014, under the theme "Responsible Partnership for Sustainable Growth and Security." (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Posted: Thursday, October 16, 2014 6:52 pm
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Updated: 12:45 pm, Fri Oct 17, 2014.
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MILAN (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin's diplomatic blitz on Ukraine got off to a rocky start Thursday when he kept German Chancellor Angela Merkel waiting for a meeting then showed up in the middle of a dinner with European and Asian leaders.
Putin is looking to get relief from Western economic sanctions imposed since Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and its support for a pro-Russia insurgency in eastern Ukraine.
To that end, he has scheduled a series of meetings on the sidelines of a two-day ASEM summit of European and Asian leaders, including a breakfast meeting Friday with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and key European leaders.
The warm-up bilateral with Merkel was scheduled before the leaders' dinner, but Putin arrived late from Belgrade after the Serbs put on a long parade in his honor.
Not only did he keep Merkel waiting, but he missed a welcome toast at a dinner for the more than 50 leaders attending the summit and was caught on TV camera walking in as the European Council president made welcoming remarks.
The Merkel meeting went ahead after dinner, four hours later than initially scheduled, according to the Interfax news agency. She met earlier with the Ukrainian president.
Merkel said going into the summit that she expects to discuss a Ukraine cease-fire deal signed last month, which has reduced hostilities but failed to stop all fighting.
"It is above all Russia's task to say clearly that the Minsk plan is really respected," Merkel said as she arrived for the summit. "Unfortunately, there are still very, very big shortcomings. But it is important to seek dialogue here."
Putin on Friday may also meet privately with Poroshenko and has a bilateral planned with Italian Premier Matteo Renzi, who is hosting the 10th ASEM summit.
Poroshenko said he expected "peace and stability in Ukraine" to be the result of Friday's discussion as he headed into a meeting with Renzi.
Merkel wasn't the only one waiting for Putin. The news agency ANSA said Silvio Berlusconi was waiting to receive his old friend -- but noted that the former premier, who is under house arrest on a tax fraud conviction, received court permission to spend the night away from his villa.
In Belgrade, Putin voiced hope that talks in Italy would help resolve a gas pricing dispute between Russia and Ukraine.
Much of the Russian gas supplied to the EU passes through pipelines crossing Ukraine, and Putin warned that Russia would cut supplies intended for Europe if Ukraine siphons off gas intended for Europe, as it did in 2008.
"Russia always has been a reliable supplier. But there are big transit risks," Putin said.
Two members of the feminist group Femen protested Putin's inclusion in the summit, baring their breasts and covering themselves in red paint as they demanded an end to bloodshed in Ukraine.
The two-day ASEM summit, which aims to forge closer economic and cultural ties and confront common threats, opened against the backdrop of the conflict in Ukraine, student protests in Hong Kong and escalating concerns about the Ebola outbreak.
The biannual gathering also touches on natural disaster response, international crime, terrorism and climate change.
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Vladimir Isachenkov reported from Belgrade, Serbia.
© 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Updated: 12:45 pm.
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