ROME, December 11. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will hold in Rome on Friday meetings with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni, as well as will take part in the Mediterranean dialogue conference, which will be focus on the fight against terrorism in the region, among other things.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the talks with Gentiloni "will focus on the current foreign policy topics, including the fight against the Islamic State terrorist group, the situation in Syria, in Libya and Ukraine." "The Russian side will place the emphasis on the need for joint efforts of the international community to suppress the global terrorist threat, in accordance with the proposal of Russian President Vladimir Putin to establish a broad coalition against terrorism and develop cooperation in this field on the basis of principles and norms of international law, the UN Charter, without politicization and double standards," the ministry said.
On Thursday, the foreign ministers of Russia and Italy Lavrov and Gentiloni discussed the situation in Syria "on the sidelines" of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Belgrade, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. "The two countries’ foreign ministers exchanged views on key international issues, including the situation in Syria, as well as the most pressing issues of the Russian-Italian relations," the ministry reported.
- Russia and Italy have priority projects in aircraft building, tyre production — Lavrov
- Italy notes Russia’s constructive role in Syrian settlement — foreign minister
- Lavrov hails Italy’s pragmatic approach amid current Russia-EU dialogue
- Italian lawmaker points to necessity of Russian participation in anti-IS efforts
- Italian economics minister says situation over Russian gas supplies is stable
"The Libyan issue will be considered in view of the tasks to counter the spread of Islamic State and attain the country’s political stabilization," the ministry reported. "During the discussion of the situation in Ukraine, a special emphasis will be placed on the need to ensure a consistent and full implementation of the Minsk agreements of 12 February 2015".
Italy, the Russian Foreign Ministry said, "is one of the most important European partners of Russia." "In recent years, the dynamics of relations between the two countries has declined due to the current Western policy of pressure on Russia in connection with the Ukrainian crisis", the ministry said. At the same time, the Italian party "is interested in continuing cooperation with Russia in the international arena, seeks to preserve the great positive potential of Russian-Italian relations accumulated over many years and the traditionally close and trusting dialogue at the highest level."
During the talks the two sides will also discuss the topical issues of the Russian-Italian relations in the political, economic and cultural spheres, the prospects for expanding the legal framework of the bilateral relations. Lavrov and Gentiloni will sign a programme of the Russian-Italian cooperation in the field of culture and education for 2016-2018.