WASHINGTON, June 4 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George W. Bush left here Monday morning for Europe ahead of the G8 summit in Germany.

    According to the schedule, Bush will attend the summit, and meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and French President Nicolas Sarkozy on its sidelines.

    His European tour will also take him to the Czech Republic, Poland, Italy, Albania and Bulgaria.

    "The president is looking forward to this opportunity to meet with friends and allies and strengthen the transatlantic relationship," U.S. National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley said at a briefing on June 1.

    Bush will try to strengthen relations with East European countries and soothe ties with Russia, which has threatened to retaliate against a U.S. plan to deploy a missile defense system in Eastern Europe.

    Russia has voiced strong opposition to the U.S. plan and said it poses a threat to Russia's security. However, the United States insisted the missile defense system is not targeting Russia.