GORKI, March 03. /ITAR-TASS/. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Monday that Ukraine “had always been and would always remain an important trade partner for Russia.”

“This is the issue which the government must deal with, and we attentively follow the developments of the situation,” Medvedev said.

The prime minister added that both countries have obligatory agreements, ”in particular, the documents, which were signed last December and which remain unchanged.”

Russian stock exchange indices dropped at Monday’s opening against the backdrop of the recent developments in neighboring Ukraine. The RTS Index sank 10.74% to 1,131.15 points. The MICEX Index plunged 9.52% to 1,313 points.