Russia is hopeful that the deteriorated relations with the European Union can be reversed back to normal if the West abandons its antagonistic propaganda and engages in mutually respectful dialogue, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st May, 2021) Russia is hopeful that the deteriorated relations with the European Union can be reversed back to normal if the West abandons its antagonistic propaganda and engages in mutually respectful dialogue, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday.
"I don't say this to prove anything to anyone, but in the hopes that a lesson can be learned here. I really want to believe that these [negative] trends can be reversed," Lavorv said at press conference after talks with his Portuguese counterpart, Augusto Santos Silva.
According to the minister, this can be achieved only if all parties "engage in substantive discussion with facts in hand instead of repeating systemic propaganda year after year."
Lavrov also noted that the EU would soon need to review its relations with Russia as the new "polycentric" world was emerging.
He further thanked the Portuguese foreign minister for his visit to Russia and said that he affirmed the EU's interest in normalizing the relations.
"Despite the damage caused by the sanctions, Russia is still the fifth most important foreign trade partner of the European Union. And the EU, in turn, remains cumulatively one of our main trade and investment partners," Lavrov added.
In 2020, the EU accounted for about 34% of Russia's trade turnover with $192 billion, a big decrease from 2013, he stated.
Lavrov stressed that the EU and Russia share responsibility for the future of the region and need to show political will for cooperation based on mutual interests. Only through such joint efforts the sustainable development and security of the European continent can be achieved, the minister concluded.
