ROME, May 27 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – Coming from France where he was met with massive anti-U.S. demonstrations, U.S. President George W. Bush heads Monday to Rome, the last stop of a four-nation tour, where a historic NATO-Russia summit will be held Tuesday, May 28.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, a key U.S. ally within the European Union, will meet Bush at a renaissance palace on the wooded outskirts of Rome for a working dinner, expected to concentrate on preparations for Tuesday's summit and U.S. and E.U. efforts to restart the Middle East peace process, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.

Bush, who left France Monday, faced criticism from President Jacques Chirac, who according to his spokeswoman Catherine Colonna, said he had trouble with the "campaign against France in the United States, which tends to depict France as an anti-Semitic country".

Chirac called on Bush "not to confuse the issue", according to Colonna, who noted the U.S. president had been receptive to Chirac's comments and had engaged in the discussion, said AFP.

When arriving in Italy, Bush, on one hand, is expected to praise Berlusconi for Italy's contribution to what the U.S. called the war on terrorism, not only in terms of domestically cracking down on Al-Qaeda cells, but also its military contribution to the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, to which Italy is one of the five biggest contributors.

Berlusconi, on the other hand, eager to extend Rome's influence in the Middle East, is expected to seek Bush's backing for Italy to host a groundbreaking Middle East summit, probably next month, AFP said.

Israel's Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said earlier this month that if it was up to Israel, Rome would be a perfect venue for such a summit. Therefore, Bush may welcome the offer, but is expected to be non-committal.

Other bilateral issues will be also discussed between the two leaders. One key concern of the United States, AFP said,  is that the E.U. not violate World Trade Organization (WTO) principles by adopting restrictions in trade in Genetically Modified Organisms.

Meanwhile, in order to provide highest level of security for the one-day  NATO-Russia summit which Tuesday draws the 19 NATO leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin to Rome, Italy has erected an air, sea and land security barrier, AFP said.

The Italians have also mobilized some 15,000 troops and police and deployed dozens of fighter aircraft, backed by helicopters and missile batteries.

The agreement will create a new council that will enable the erstwhile enemies to take common positions in a number of predefined areas.

The new council will make decisions on issues such as counterterrorism, limiting the spread of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, missile defense, peacekeeping and management of regional crises, marine search and rescue, and military cooperation and arms control.

Berlusconi said the historic summit marked "the marriage of Russia with the West, the acquisition of the Russian Federation by the West."

The last major gathering of heads of state in Italy was in Genoa for the Group of Eight summit last July.

Following that gathering, according to AFP, Italian intelligence agents had reports of a possible plot to kill U.S. President George Bush using a plane.