VLADIVOSTOK - President Vladimir Putin on Friday said Russia and a new bloc with ex-Soviet states were well-positioned to become a bridge between Europe and Asia, as he hosted a Pacific regional summit, while the US officials said the United States and Russia will cut down on paperwork and fees for visas from Sunday as part of efforts to build ties.

The Russian strongman, who is hosting the weekend’s APEC summit on Russky Island off the Pacific port of Vladivostok, said his efforts to unite Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus into a post-Soviet economic bloc could also prove beneficial for Asia and Europe.“Essentially, we’d like to create a powerful centre of regional development,” said Putin ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, the first major global event he is hosting of his third Kremlin term. “The future Eurasian Economic Union can become a linking factor between Europe and the Asia Pacific region,” Putin said. “Today it’s vital to build bridges between various regions of the world,” he said, speaking to business leaders before the two days of talks of the APEC leaders that begin on Saturday.
Putin expressed hope that the modern infrastructure including two massive bridges built for the summit would help breathe new life into a region on the border with China and North Korea.
Chinese President Hu Jintao - who extolled Russia’s efforts to host the summit as an indication of the country’s “great development potential” - was the first foreign leader to hold bilateral talks with Putin.
The visas move coincides with a visit by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the Russian port city for the APEC summit. Under the agreement, Russia will end the cumbersome requirement of asking US citizens to produce invitation letters for business visas.