Vice President Plans 'Freedom Agenda' Trip
By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent
WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney looked ahead Tuesday to a three-nation, six-day trip designed to nurture democracy and advance U.S. interests in lands where political change doesn't always come easily.
Administration officials said a speech in Lithuania on Thursday to leaders of the Baltic and Black Sea regions would be the centerpiece of the journey, which also includes an unusual high-level visit to Kazakhstan.
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While officials hoped Cheney's trip would advance President Bush's second-term "freedom agenda," energy issues, Iran's nuclear program and concerns about Russian President Vladimir Putin's actions also hovered over the journey.
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...Kazakhstan has a strategic location, sharing borders with both China and Russia. It also holds vast energy resources at a time of increasing global demand for oil and gas supplies.
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