The two state heads came out with a joint statement during the commemoration of the 65th anniversary of the meeting of Soviet soldiers and their US allies at the Elbe River, located near Torgau, a town in Germany, some days prior to the end of Nazi Germany.

“The atmosphere of mutual trust and shared commitment to victory, which accompanied the historic handshake at the Elbe, is especially called for today when Russia and the United States are building a partnership for the sake of a stable and prosperous world”, noted the statement released by the Kremlin.

“We are convinced that, acting in the ’spirit of the Elbe’ on an equitable and constructive basis, we can successfully tackle any tasks facing our nations and effectively deal with the challenges of the new millennium”, it added.

The US president has initiated a priority move to “reset” his nation’s relationship with Moscow, which reached its record post-Cold War low during the 2008 war between Georgia and Russia.

Earlier this month, Russia and the US have signed a breakthrough agreement on nuclear arms reduction, which is regarded as a vital element of the US president’s move to hold back worldwide nuclear threat.

The Russian president said that he and the US leader have “changed the atmosphere” of the US-Russian relations.

Relative to this, the US House of Representatives, as well as the US Senate, have approved rival bills aimed at Iran’s firm defiance to freeze its controversial nuclear programme. The two influential components of the US government need to pass a cooperated legislation on Iran’s nuclear issue to be sent to the president for further consideration.

Hoyer stated that the House will be voting this week to name its representatives to the meeting, which is set to resolve the issues between the two versions of the legislation. A source said that the result of the vote will be announced in Wednesday or Thursday.

Questioned about how quickly the US Congress can finish the process and send the legislation to the president for approval, he told journalists that House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman “would like to get this done in a matter of weeks”.

Moreover, the final legislation is anticipated to focus on the reliance of Iran on the importation of processed petroleum products like gasoline. The defiant nation lacks the capability to locally refine such petroleum products.

Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns stated in a statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee that the process involved in attaining consensus is very challenging.

With regards to the defiance of Iran to stop its nuclear drive, “we are moving with a sense of urgency toward a new UN Security Council resolution”, said Burns.

“We are working aggressively to adopt concrete measures that will serve as a platform to strengthen and expand upon existing sanctions and target the power centres mostly likely to have an impact on Iran’s strategic calculus”, he added.

He also noted that Iran is also being pressured by their long-standing investment and trade partners because of the country’s controversial nuclear programme.

The US House of Representatives and the Senate have approved rival editions of a legislation which is set to impose a new set of US sanctions against Iran; however, lawmakers who will form a compromise version of the legislation to be sent to US President Barack Obama is yet to be formed.

On the other hand, Iran has denied the accusations of Western countries that its nuclear programme entails the creation of nuclear weapons. The country is also facing several sets of UN sanctions for their refusal to stop their enrichment of uranium.

“Neither our formal penalties nor the increasing ostracism Iran faces from the world will alter its agenda overnight, but we believe that the mounting weight of political and financial pressures on its leadership can persuade Tehran to reassess its approach to the world”, concluded Burns.

Obama’s mission is to convince his fellow world leaders that their countries also face the similar danger as that which troubles the US.

“The single biggest threat to US security, both short-term, medium-term and long-term, would be the possibility of a terrorist organization obtaining a nuclear weapon”, the US president stated on Sunday.

“We know that organizations like Al-Qaeda are in the process of trying to secure a nuclear weapon — a weapon of mass destruction that they have no compunction at using”, he added.

Obama will be meeting Chinese President Hu Jintao on Monday to discuss the issue on the yuan, China’s currency. He is also scheduled to meet Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian and King Abdullah II of Jordan on this same day.

In spite of the concern on extremists groups, North Korea and Iran, two nations that have controversial nuclear programmes, will also be considered in the two-day summit.

Washington is in the forefront of an effort to harden sanctions against Iran regarding its nuclear programme, which the US and its allies insist is aimed at creating weapons. Tehran vehemently denies such accusations.

Obama also met with South African President Jacob Zuma and President Nursultan Nazerbayev of Kazakhstan on Sunday to start his counter-proliferation initiative.

However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dropped his plans to participate in the summit reportedly due to concern that Islamic nations are planning to employ the summit to push Israel to have its nuclear facilities be subjected to international inspection.

The president will be seeking support from world leaders in his initiative to secure loose nuclear armaments around the globe within four year’s time as he hosts the biggest summit spearheaded by an American president in 65 years.

“The single biggest threat to US security, both short-term, medium-term and long-term, would be the possibility of a terrorist organization obtaining a nuclear weapon”, said Obama.

“We know that organizations like Al-Qaeda are in the process of trying to secure a nuclear weapon — a weapon of mass destruction that they have no compunction at using”.

Aside from the issue about extremist groups, North Korea and Iran, who already have a nuclear arsenal, will be discussed in the two-day congress.

The White House is seeking to solicit commitments from various world leaders in securing stockpiles of uranium and plutonium to make sure that they will not be stolen, sold or smuggled to extremists.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said to ABC News: “The threat of nuclear war… has diminished. The threat of nuclear terrorism has increased”.

The president has singled out South African President Jacob Zuma and President Nursultan Nazerbayev of Kazakhstan for making responsible decisions regarding their nuclear programs.

He has also talked with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of Pakistan and India regarding the issue of nuclear weapons.

US authorities are hopeful that nations involved in the summit will concur to a series of security measures to secure their nuclear materials, as well as help generate funds to put the nuclear arsenals of lesser well-off nations under close monitoring.

The much-awaited Nuclear Posture Review is necessitated by the US Congress from every US administration. The president has set expectations on a high note following his promise to put an end to “Cold War thinking”. Last year, he won the Nobel Peace Prize for his desire to have a world without nuclear bombs.

The president said in March that the new scheme, which was established following months of considerations, targets to “reduce the number and role of nuclear weapons in our national security strategy, even as we maintain a safe, secure and effective nuclear deterrent”.

The new arms plans will also be setting the stage for the president’s signing of a breakthrough arms-control agreement with President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia on Thursday in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Washington will also be hosting a worldwide nuclear security conference next week.

Obama is facing the challenging task of putting credibility on his agenda on arms control without alarming supporters under the defence umbrella of the US or restricting their capabilities in working with the nuclear threats from North Korea and Iran.

Robert Gibbs, the spokesman of the White House, said to reporters on Monday that “The president will unveil the nuclear posture review that he and others have been working on for quite some time.

“Nuclear security is one of the issues that the president is most focussed on in foreign policy”, he concluded.

The plan, which includes bills already approved by the House of Representatives and the Senate, was designed to provide insurance to 31 million Americans and impose tougher regulations on insurers demanding high premium costs.

The measures were criticised by Republicans, who claim that the move was an attempt by the Obama administration to rattle the opposition and push the measure past Congress despite public disapproval.

Obama’s plan was released 72 hours before the President’s meeting with Republican officials who have been fighting against his proposals.

The President is hoping to gain new political support after Anthem Blue Cross of California announced that it would raise premiums. Obama’s plan would allow the federal government to block such increases and create a new body of health industry professionals. It could also reduce the deficit budget of the US ‘by 100 billion dollars over the next 10 years — and about one trillion over the second decade — by cutting government overspending and reining in waste, fraud and abuse’.

Robert Gibbs, the spokesman for the White House, said he wants the Republicans to come up with their own plans for their discussion with the President on Thursday.

Republicans argued, however, that their plans have been out for a long time and Obama’s cooperation has not been sincere since. House of Representatives Republican John Boehner said: “The president has crippled the credibility of this week’s summit by proposing the same massive government takeover of health care based on a partisan bill the American people have already rejected”.

Obama, who delivered his speech at the White House during the first anniversary of the signing of the Recovery Act bill, insisted that the stimulus bill rescued the country from the worst of the economic crisis. He also rebuked some Republicans who criticised the bill and called it a waste.

In his speech, Obama defended the stimulus by saying “it is one of the main reasons the economy has gone from shrinking by six percent to growing by about six percent”, and added that this bill “is responsible for the jobs of about two million Americans who would otherwise be unemployed”.

The president said the stimulus will preserve or generate 1.5 million jobs for Americans this year after preserving or generating up to two million jobs so far.

However, Obama has yet to convince Americans who still cannot find a job amid the country’s jobless rate of 9.7 percent.

According to a CBS News/New York Times survey conducted last week, only six percent of Americans were convinced that the stimulus had generated jobs. Another survey by CNN/Opinion Research Corporation indicated that majority of Americans were opposed to the bill.

In addition, the price tag of the government’s stimulus program has increased. The Congressional Budget Office projects that after everything is said and done, the cost of the bill will reach $862 billion considering the unemployment compensation that has been more expensive than expected.

If the Senate confirms the nomination, Ford would represent the interests of the United States as it aims to restore diplomatic relations with a country bordering both Israel and Iraq.

According to White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, “Ambassador Ford is a highly accomplished diplomat with many years of experience in the Middle East”. He added: “His appointment represents President Obama’s commitment to use engagement to advance US interests by improving communication with the Syrian government and people”.

Obama had prioritised the transformation of the image of the United States in the Middle East during his first year in power. He went to Egypt to speak about connecting with the Muslim community. He has also met with both Palestinian and Israeli leaders at the White House. However, a peace pact between the two countries is still unachievable.

Foreign policy advisers in the Obama administration said that the US was placing an ambassador in Damascus as a sign of its search for regional partners that could help in promoting peace in the Middle East. The announcement was said to be the highlight of the engagement of Washington with the Arab nation during Obama’s visit to Egypt.

“If confirmed by the Senate, Ambassador Ford will engage the Syrian government on how we can enhance relations, while addressing areas of ongoing concern,” added Gibbs.

The rocky relationship of Syria with the US had begun to improve after Obama took office in January 2009.

Amidst the punishing weather, Obama completed his scheduled private meeting with the black leaders, which consisted of Rev. Al Sharpton, president of the National Action Network; Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League; and Benjamin Jealous, president of the NAACP. Dorothy Height, head of the National Council of Negro Women, was not able to attend the meeting because of the bad weather that hit Washington.

The three leaders said that they are pushing for relief in rural and urban communities mostly populated by hurting minorities. They said they would relay the same message to both Republican and Democratic lawmakers as Congress talks about new employment legislation.

“We do not seek any special kind of edict … from the president because he’s African-American”, said Sharpton.

The private meeting did not produce any announcements or plans, but the leaders expressed their confidence that President Obama heard the message that they wanted to convey.

Declining to elaborate on the matter, the White House said that the president’s discussion with the leaders focused on the challenges faced by economically disadvantaged areas in the country and the government’s efforts to help.

“We worked very hard to share with him ideas around the need for targeted relief — and that means to urban communities, to areas of high unemployment”, said Morial.

He added that the next challenge is to “create the political will in the Congress”.