Kelly Wallace: Leaders hail summit a success

CNN's Kelly Wallace

ST. PETERSBURG , Russia (CNN) -- One day after signing a landmark nuclear reduction treaty, U.S. President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin declared their summit a success.

CNN's Kyra Phillips spoke Saturday with CNN White House Correspondent Kelly Wallace, who is covering Bush's European trip.

PHILLIPS: Why don't you go ahead and give us some more perspective about what's happening there -- the signing of the treaty on Friday, the reaction it's receiving?

WALLACE: The two leaders reacted to the summit just a short time ago as they were visiting the Hermitage art museum here.

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They talked to reporters, both really hailing the summit a success, President Bush saying it met his expectations, and President Putin saying all the goals of the summit were met.

Clearly, of course, it was both leaders hailing this treaty as opening up a new area of relations between the two countries.

There are critics, though. ... A big concern is that some of these excess warheads will be stored as opposed to destroyed. This is obviously causing some concern, but the U.S. officials were pushing for that in the case of any emergency.

They did start [Saturday] visiting the cemetery marking the 600,000 people who died during the Siege of Leningrad back during World War II.

There we saw President Bush laying a wreath to honor those people who lost their lives, and the president writing in a guest book, "May God bless those who died and bless their families. With regards, George Bush."

The president said that anyone going to that site should remember the ravages of war, and he told reporters that this visit is really about peace.

We saw the president and President Putin and their wives a short time later visiting the State Hermitage Museum, the largest art museum here in Russia. They looked very interested, looking at paintings and taking in the sights.