Bush Says He Is Relevant

President Bush makes remarks to the media with former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole and former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala, not shown, in the Rose Garden of the White House, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2007 in Washington. Shalala and Dole are co-chairs of the President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) (Gerald Herbert - AP)

"We don't agree on a lot of issues; we do agree on some," Bush said. "Iran is one; nuclear proliferation is another. Reducing our nuclear warheads was an issue that we agreed on early."

Putin said last week he saw no "objective data" to prove Western claims that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons. Bush said he wanted to get a readout directly from Putin about his visit to Iran, the first by a Russian leader since 1943.

"I've told people that if you're interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them (Iran) from having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon," Bush said.

Bush admitted he tried _ but failed _ last month to get Putin to talk about his political plans. "And he was wily. He wouldn't tip his hand," Bush said. Putin has opened the door to becoming Russia's prime minister and retaining power when his presidential term ends next year.

On another foreign policy front, Bush expressed opposition to Turkey staging a military offensive in Iraq against Kurdish rebels. Turkey's parliament voted 507-19 to empower the military to cross into Iraq although the government appeared willing to give diplomatic pressure more time to work.

"We are making it very clear to Turkey that we don't think it is in their interest to send troops into Iraq," Bush said at the news conference.

The president also urged Congress not to anger Turkey, a key ally in the war on Iraq, by approving a resolution labeling as genocide the World War I-era killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians in the final years of the Ottoman Empire.

"One thing Congress should not be doing is sorting out the historical record of the Ottoman Empire," he said. The measure has been losing support and appears unlikely to pass.

Bush seemed less concerned, however, about offending China. He defended his decision to attend a ceremony on Capitol Hill later Wednesday honoring the Dalai Lama, the spiritual head of Tibet's Buddhists. The ceremony angered Chinese leaders.

"One, I admire the Dalai Lama a lot; two, I support religious freedom, he supports religious freedom," Bush said.

Bush also expressed confidence about making progress between Israel and the Palestinians at an upcoming peace conference on the Middle East, to be held in Annapolis, Md. He said one reason for holding the conference is to get what he called "Arab buy-in" for a Palestinian state. "Part of the issue in the past has been that the Arab nations stood on the sidelines," Bush said. "And when a state was in reach, they weren't a part of the process, encouraging the parties to move forward."