Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov arrived in Washington late Wednesday, amid a flurry of diplomatic activity to lay the groundwork for an upcoming summit between US President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

Ivanov arrived in the US capital shortly before midnight (0500 GMT), promising to ensure the success of Putin's first meeting with the US president on US soil.

The two leaders will hold talks on November 12 in Washington and then travel to Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, to continue their discussion in a more informal setting.

On Thursday, Ivanov will meet with US Secretary of State Colin Powell to, as he put it, "synchronize their watches" before the upcoming US-Russian summit.

"We hope this summit will help us strengthen cooperation between Russia and the United States," Ivanov told reporters after his arrival.

He said he expected Thursday's talks with Powell to focus on the antiterrorism campaign launched by the Bush administration in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.

"We have an overall positive view of our cooperation against international terrorism and intend to strengthen it in the future," the Russian foreign minister said.

Russia has granted the United States access to its airspace, agreed to use by the US military of Soviet-built bases in Central Asia and offered to share intelligence about terrorist activities ahead of US-led military operations in Afghanistan.

Without elaborating, Ivanov said he expected to discuss with Powell issues related to the antiterrorism campaign, as well as "a future arrangement for Afghanistan."

The United States and its allies are trying to cobble together a transitional coalition government for Afghanistan that would replace the radical Taliban regime.

( China Daily 11/01/2001)