The dialogue with Russia continues
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The President of the European Council, Nicolas Sarkozy,
with Dmitry Medvedev and José Manuel Barroso
© European Communities
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Relations between the European Union and Russia will be discussed at high level on 14 November in Nice. The President-in-Office of the European Council, Nicolas Sarkozy, the President of the Commission, José Manuel Barroso, and the High Representative for EU Foreign Policy, Javier Solana, will meet the Russian President Dmitri Medvedev on that occasion. The summit meeting will be dominated by the economic and financial crisis and by international and economic questions as well as the resumption of the negotiations on a future strategic partnership which were deferred by the decision of the twenty-seven Member States on 1 September 2008 as a result of the crisis in Georgia.
The Ministers for Foreign Affairs, meeting in Brussels on 10 November, emphasised that Russia had to continue honouring its commitments in connection with the agreements of 12 August and 8 September 2008 concerning Georgia and had to involve itself constructively in the discussions in Geneva. They agreed, however, that the new reinforced partnership should once again be placed on the table. "The dialogue must be continued. There is no other solution", stated the French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, who chaired the meeting.
The present partnership and cooperation agreement does not entirely meet the needs of the two sides. The intended aim is for the new instrument to cover a broader range of areas of cooperation and provide for the enhancement of bilateral relations in various sectors.
Further information:
Extract from the Council press release (pdf)
Coming event
Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 18, 19 and 20 November 2008