President Bush began his four day trip to Europe today with a speech before business and political leaders in Brussels. Many of the themes in the speech were carried forward from his State of the Union speech last month. He spoke of the historic ties between Europe and America that are rooted in freedom and democracy. "We must seize this moment," the President said, "When America and Europe stand together no problem can stand against us." Speaking of the transatlantic alliance he said, ""The alliance of Europe and North America is the main pillar of our security in a new century. No temporary debate, no passing disagreement of governments, no power on earth will ever divide us."

Bush called for Syria to end its occupation of Lebanon. To Iran he said, "Iran must end support for terror and must not develop nuclear weapons."

Some say the most important visit the President will make on this trip is his meeting on Thursday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia has stalled on it's road to democracy. It is a troubled region and still a key nation in the fight against terror. Bush was very tough in his words. "Russian's future lies with Europe and the transatlantic alliance. For Russia to make progress as a European nation the Russian government must renew a commitment to democracy and the rule of law."

Stratfor.com has a good analysis of this critical period in Russia. "(Putin), has been pushed as far as he can go by the United States...Ukraine was the tipping point as far as the Russians are concerned. They are now convinced the United States intends to rip Russia -- and its sphere of influence -- apart. Whether this is the American intention really doesn't matter to Moscow. In the Russians' minds, having Ukraine in NATO means the end of Russia as a single integrated nation. Fair elections and whatnot are not the issue for the Kremlin: For Russia, this is a national security issue. This is not a meeting in which one side is going to persuade the other of anything. The reality is that the ground is eroding out from under Putin -- and if he comes out of this meeting looking like Bush's lapdog, he is going to have serious problems.

Bush, on the other hand, actually needs Putin. The anti-jihadist war is not over, and Central Asia is an important part of that war. Putin still holds the keys to the front door there. Also, China's geopolitical future is murky. The United States does not want a strategic alliance between Russia and China. That means Bush will have to give Putin something to take home. What Putin wants is a sign that the United States will respect Russia's sphere of influence. He wants Bush to make it clear that Ukraine will not join NATO." (Geopolitical Diary: Sunday, Feb. 20, 2005; Stratfor.com; Subscription required)

As the President makes his way through Europe this week there will be plenty of words and speculation. Let's see where it leads.