We turn now to the annual G8 summit that ends today. The summit was held in St. Petersburg Russia over the weekend. Leaders of the world's industrialized nations gathered for their annual meeting where host Russian President Vladimir Putin, had hoped to focus on energy security, fighting infectious disease and education.

But much of the talks centered on the Israeli air strikes in Lebanon. In a statement, G-8 leaders called for the return of the kidnapped soldiers and an end to the shelling as well as a halt to Israeli military operations. In addition, the statement also called for an early withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of detained Palestinian ministers and parliamentarians.

On Saturday, Putin and President Bush gave a joint news conference that highlighted their differences over Israel's actions in Lebanon, the state of Russian democracy and Iraq.

For a full transcript and audio clip of the interview, please visit the Democracy Now web site.