The presidents of Russia and France say after Kremlin talks that they have almost identical positions on most issues, but differ openly on the future of Yugoslavia and separatist Chechnya.
Mr Vladimir Putin and Mr Jacques Chirac started their two-day meeting today with a commitment to improve ties damaged by disputes over Russia's military campaign in Chechnya and legal rows.
Mr Chirac said they had achieved "considerable convergence" on many issues and Mr Putin said their views "almost coincided".
The two leaders issued a statement appealing against any moves to undermine existing international security arrangements, but carefully avoiding any mention of US plans for an anti-missile shield.
But they were clearly uneasy with each other on key matters.
Mr Putin challenged Mr Chirac's praise of Slobodan Milosevic's handover to the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague despite the opposition of Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica. And he stoutly defended Russia's military drive in Chechnya.
Addressing a joint news conference in a sumptuous Kremlin hall, Mr Chirac praised Milosevic's transfer as "the victory of right over violence, of democracy over tyranny, a moment of hope for justice and liberty throughout the world".
Mr Putin's reply was blunt."We want the triumph of democracy, stability and predictability in this region. Does Milosevic's transfer to The Hague bring us any closer to these aims? I doubt it," he said.
"Do we not trust Kostunica and the country he leads? Do we want to destabilise this leader? Do we want to destabilise his country? I think the answer to all three questions must be 'No, No and No."
On Chechnya, Mr Putin seized the microphone when a reporter asked Mr Chirac whether France had abandoned attempts to influence Russia's behaviour in its 20-month-old campaign in Chechnya - where troops face daily ambushes and attacks from snipers.
"We are dealing with isolated attacks by separatists. The latest attacks are carried out by fighters who come from abroad, mostly mercenaries with large quantities of heroin," he said, drumming his fingers on the table.
"This is the sort of people we are waging an armed battle against and will continue to do so. I believe that if a group of mercenaries landed in southern France with similar aims, France would act in the same way. As for political issues, we will solve them by political means."
On arms control, a joint statement called for an international conference on rocket technology transfers and said existing arms control agreements should not be replaced by a "less constraining" arrangement.
Both sides have recently toned down their opposition to US President George W Bush's missile defence scheme.