The century-old mansion where US President George W. Bush will host Russian President Vladimir Putin this weekend boasts breathtaking views of Maine's rocky coast, soothing summer breezes and an aura of old wealth.
Bush hopes the relaxed atmosphere at his father's summer home and opportunities for leisure activities like boating will ease strains in his relationship with the increasingly outspoken Putin.
Though Bush and Putin once had a solid personal rapport, US-Russian tensions are at their worst since the end of the Cold War over issues like Russia's human rights record, a proposed US missile shield and the Iraq war. The Russian leader arrives Sunday afternoon for a two-day visit to Walker's Point, a piece of land that juts into the Atlantic Ocean in the resort town of Kennebunkport.
Bush's parents, former President George Bush and his wife, Barbara, spend their summers at Walker's Point in a gracious stone-and-shingle home built in 1903 by the president's great-grandfather, George H. Walker. Like the Bushes, many vacationers to Kennebunkport hail from wealthy, well-established New England families.
Seasonal visitors stroll along the town's rugged beaches, browse through its art galleries and sample lobster plucked fresh from the ocean. This weekend is expected to see other crowds, with Bush's presence drawing antiwar protesters.
Maine holds many childhood memories for Bush, but he has tended to play down his family's East Coast roots. He prefers the wide-open prairies and searing heat of his Crawford, Texas, ranch to the ocean vistas and cooler weather of Kennebunkport.
Putin has been a guest of Bush in Crawford and the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains. The Russian president is far from the first foreign leader to visit Kennebunkport. Poland's Lech Walesa, Jordan's King Hussein, Britain's John Major and Israel's Yitzhak Rabin were among the dignitaries hosted by Bush's father. But the invitation to Putin is seen as a significant gesture.
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