US President George Bush starts Monday what is expected to be his farewell European tour, during which he will visit Ukraine, Romania, Croatia and Russia.

After a brief stop in Ukraine, Bush will go to Romania to attend a summit with NATO leaders on April 2. After visiting Croatia on April 5 Bush will land in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi for his probable final meeting with Vladimir Putin as Russian president.

The main topic of the meeting with Putin will be US plans to install interceptor missiles in Eastern Europe.

The Bush administration says the defence system, which meets Russian opposition, is designed to defend against attacks from "rogue states," not from Russia.

Relations between Washington and Moscow have plummeted in recent years amidst bitter disputes, and the talks in Sochi have raised hopes that Bush and Putin can lay the foundation for repairing ties.

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