US President George W Bush flew into the northern German city of Rostock Tuesday evening, to be ferried by helicopter to the scenic Baltic resort of Heiligendamm for the G8 summit, according to dpa. The US president arrived from Prague, where he had held talks on the stationing of elements of a US missile defence shield, primarily aimed at countering a future threat from Iran. The US missile shield in Central Europe has run into strong opposition from Russia, with President Vladimir Putin threatening to position new missiles aimed at Europe. Bush and Putin were expected to clash over the issue at the gathering that gets underway Wednesday evening and goes into Friday. Bush was to meet summit host German Chancellor Angela Merkel for an informal lunch Wednesday before the main summit gets underway. A group of around 500 demonstrators, who had positioned themselves on a road leading to Rostock-Laage airport, delivered their message to Bush by means of large letters chalked onto the road. Others held up banners with the aim of telling the US president that he was "not welcome." A large police presence ensured that the demonstration did not get close to the president.
