31.   Bush has invited the Russian leader to visit his ranch in Crawford, Texas, this fall.

32.   But Chechnya is still a raw battlefield that Russian leaders are using to rally political support at home even as criticism mounts abroad.

33.   But intrepid opinionmongers trekked into these Alps to learn how Chinese and Russian leaders react to Bush administration plans for a missile defense.

34.   But it also stiffened the resolve of Russian leaders, who have intensified attacks on Islamic strongholds in Dagestan in an effort to stamp out the rebellion.

35.   But in September, Yeltsin broke a Kremlin tradition about the secrecy of the health of Russian leaders by telling the public that he had a heart problem.

36.   But it does say something about the policy options available to the Russian leader as he tries to rein in cowboy capitalism and restore some sort of civic order.

37.   But others had kind words for the president as he made history by becoming the first Russian leader to hand over power voluntarily.

38.   But Putin, the first Russian leader to visit Havana since the disintegration of the Soviet Union, brings a substantive agenda as well.

39.   But Russian leaders viewed NATO as the latest in a long list of foreign foes that have sought to encircle Russia.

40.   But Moscow rejected the idea of talks with Maskhadov, who Russian leaders say does not control rival rebel commanders.