Moscow still has lasting concerns

Jacques Chirac should have been the first Western leader to visit Russia since President Putin won a landslide victory at the polls last month. Instead, an urgent government reshuffle at home meant the French leader was beaten to the post by Gerhard Schroeder, who paid a brief working visit to Moscow on Friday. Vladimir Putin has plenty to discuss with both men. With less than a month to go until the historic enlargement of the European Union, Moscow still has lasting concerns Mr Putin wants to address. Russia remains anxious it is losing key political and economic levers, as eight countries from its own former sphere of influence join the European fold. Relations with Brussels recently plunged to a record low, amid related trade and visa disputes.