21 January 2003 00:00
RIA NOVOSTI INTERVIEW WITH RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY OFFICIAL SPOKESMAN ALEXANDER V. YAKOVENKO ON THE EVE OF NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER IGOR S. IVANOV AND THE EU TROIKA IN ATHENS
126-21-01-2003
Question: This week Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov will reportedly meet the EU Troika in Athens. What are the major goals of the meeting?
Answer: Preparing a Russia-EU summit due in St. Petersburg on May 31st, 2003 and making it rich in substantive content, the EU enlargement and Russian concerns over its consequences, the fulfillment of agreements reached at the Brussels summit of Russia-EU on transit between the Kaliningrad region and the rest of Russia as well as solutions to other problems of life support in the Kaliningrad region will be central to Igor Ivanov's negotiations with the EU Troika in Athens on January 24th.
Question: What tasks of cooperation between Russia and the European Union would you call the most topical?
Answer: Cooperation between Russia and the European Union has of late become large-scale and comprehensive, new channels and mechanisms for cooperation have appeared which, above all, surpass the framework of the Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation between Russia and the European Union. In this connection the Russian side favours the consolidation of the institutional component of the mentioned bilateral cooperation.
We see prospects for the development of the political dialogue with the EU in the need to achieve specific results, including in the elaboration of joint initiatives aimed at the formation of a single European security space which, we believe, should suggest a balanced and non-discriminatory system of cooperation between all major European and Euro-Atlantic organisations and countries.
In this context, Russia favours the parallel development of cooperation with the EU and Nato. We expect Russia and the European Union to boost cooperation within the framework of European security and defence policy in compliance with the decisions taken at the Moscow Russia-EU summit and to make it rich in content.
The adequate practical cooperation with the EU in the fight against terrorism is becoming increasingly topical. It primarily stipulates the need to boost joint international efforts in the given direction and to bring criminals, organisers and sponsors of terrorist acts to book.
It is necessary that agreements related to foreign policy, security and defence and the fight against terrorism be based on pragmatism, take into consideration the interests of each side and be rigidly fulfilled.
The positions of Russia and the European Union on major international problems are close or coincide. Russia and the EU are mutually interested in searching for joint answers to new threats and challenges, in settling crisis situations, in particular, in the Middle East, in Afghanistan and in the Balkans. We intend to expand our dialogue with the EU within international organisations, mostly the UN and OSCE.
We are making efforts to promote the joint initiative of Russia and the European Union in the fight against the drugs threat emanating from Afghanistan. We mean that the coming St. Petersburg summit is likely to give a start to this initiative.
We expect Russia-EU cooperation during the Greek presidency in the European Union to give a substantial impetus to our political dialogue and the development of trade-economic relations.
Question: Could you, please, comment on Igor Ivanov's working visit to Greece as part of his stay in Athens?
Answer: The working visit to the Greek Republic by Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov is running in line with an agreement reached at the Moscow meeting with Yeoryios Papandreou on October 17th, 2002.
The meeting between the two ministers will become the next step in quite a routine exchange of opinions on international problems and bilateral cooperation issues.
The meeting is particularly important because it will be held during the initial period of Greece's presidency of the European Union. We plan to use the great potential of Russo-Greek relations to contribute to the development of cooperation between Russia and the European Union. We expect the Greek side to act as a constructive partner in working out co-ordinated approaches in this direction.
Question: What issues will be on the agenda of Igor Ivanov's meeting with Yeoryios Papandreou in Athens?
Answer: It's worth repeating that Russo-Greek negotiations are timed with a regular meeting between Russia and the EU Troika in Athens and therefore the event will enable the two sides to specify their positions.
The agenda also includes the situation around Iraq and the North Korean nuclear programme, the problem of the Middle East settlement, the Afghan developments in the context of international issues. The exchange of opinions will be continued on the situation in the Balkans and in the Cypriote settlement. The fight against international terrorism will also be a priority.
Issues of bilateral relations, mostly in the trade-economic sphere, will be given special attention. We are ready to contribute to the search for a mutually acceptable solution to problems related to Russian gas deliveries to Greece. We intend to express Russia's interest in joining the dialogue on the formation of a single gas supply market in Southeastern Europe and in promoting the Russian-Greek-Bulgarian Burgas-Alexandrupolis Oil Pipeline Project.
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