MOSCOW, February 5. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will meet on Friday with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, who is in Moscow on February 4-6. This is the first visit of Chief of EU diplomacy since 2017, when Borrell's predecessor Federica Mogherini visited Russia.
For the first time, Borrell spoke of his intention to visit the Russian capital back in early 2020. At the time he was going to first make a visit to Ukraine, and immediately after - to Russia. However, his plans were thwarted by the coronavirus pandemic, due to which the borders were closed. Official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova stressed that the visit was planned.
In March, the European Council plans to hold a high-level discussion of the EU-Russia relations strategy. In this regard, the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed that Lavrov and Borrell will discuss the whole range of "problems and prospects of Russia-EU relations."
In addition, head of European diplomacy arrived in Moscow amid criticism of Russia from the EU states over the situation with Alexey Navalny and the unauthorized protests that followed it. As the Russian side has repeatedly emphasized, such statements from foreign states are gross interference in the internal affairs of the Russian Federation.
The topic of Navalny and the reaction of European states to unauthorized protests will be on the agenda of Friday's talks. According to Zakharova, Russian Foreign Minister will point out to Borrell "inadmissible statements, pseudo-assessments, distortion of facts" in connection with this situation.
In addition, the parties will discuss the prospects for the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Action Plan (JCPOA) to resolve the situation around the Iranian nuclear program, further stabilize the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, security issues in Europe. Recently, Brussels reacted positively to the entry into force of the agreement between the Russian Federation and the United States on a five-year extension of the New START Treaty, which is important for European security. Earlier, the EU welcomed the cessation of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh, achieved with the active mediation of Russia. The sides also agree on the illegitimacy of Washington's threats to impose sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 project.
Another topic for discussion at the meeting between Lavrov and Borrel will be countering the coronavirus pandemic. Despite the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines into civilian circulation, the pandemic situation in the EU remains difficult, significant restrictions remain in effect in many countries, while the delivery times for EU-approved vaccines are not being met. Russia and the EU are in a dialogue on the admission of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine to the EU. According to the Russian Direct Investment Fund, the relevant documents were submitted for consideration by the European regulator, the approval process may take the entire February and early March.
An important aspect of the pandemic topic is the prospects for restoring people’s mobility. Some EU states, such as Greece and Spain, are calling for the introduction of special vaccination passports to restore international travel. Russia is wary of such initiatives, according to Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko.
In addition, during the visit, Borrell will hold meetings with representatives of Russian public organizations and the academic community in Moscow.