PRESIDENTS OF RUSSIA AND FRANCE GET IN TOUCH BY PHONE








MOSCOW, MARCH 7, RIA NOVOSTI - Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia and Jacques Chirac of France today had a lengthy telephone conversation to discuss bilateral cooperation and, specifically, the agenda of talks during the French President's planned visit to Russia this next summer, reports Russian presidential press secretary Alexei Gromov.


	The two chief executives exchanged their opinions concerning the March 23 Russia-EU summit in Stockholm. They also touched upon the most acute of today's regional problems, notably the current tension on Macedonia's border with the Yugoslav province of Kosovo, and identified measures to be urgently taken by the global community to prevent further escalation of the conflict.


	Concluding the conversation, President Chirac requested his Russian counterpart that he convey the French leader's greetings to all ladies of his country on International Women's Day, marked in Russia on March 8.