After years of confrontation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has offered the European Union a „fresh start“ in relations. Under the new EU leadership in Brussels, „There is reason to seriously think about who we are for one another in a rapidly changing world,“ Lavrov wrote in a contribution for the government newspaper „Rossijskaja Gaseta“ (Wednesday edition).
After a certain standstill, Russia’s cooperation with the majority of the EU countries is back to life. 30 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War, Russia and the EU should think about a partnership again.
„Same dangers and challenges“
„We are open to mutually beneficial, equal and pragmatic cooperation with the EU,“ Lavrov wrote. Relations between Russia and the West have been more strained since the Russian annexation of the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula of Crimea than they have been since the Cold War. The EU imposed sanctions on Russia in the 2014 Ukraine conflict. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin replied to this with an embargo on food from the EU.
„Russia and the EU remain important trading partners,“ Lavrov said. But the neighbors are also able to share responsibility for peace, prosperity and security. „We face the same dangers and challenges: terrorism, drug trafficking, organized crime, illegal migration and much more,“ Lavrov added.
