VIENNA, November 3. /TASS/. Europe should not be equated with the European Union because it is not whole without Russia, Russian Ambassador to Austria Dmitry Lyubinsky said in an interview with the Oberosterreichische Nachrichten newspaper.

"What is Europe in the political sense? Europe should not be equated with the EU or Brussels. It is much more multi-faceted. Russia, of course, is part of the continent. Yet what is more important is that Russia is a Eurasian superpower, a multi-religious and multi-ethnic country. I would rephrase your question. What is Europe without Russia? Europe without Russia is incomplete," the envoy stressed replying to a reporter’s comment that Russia had purportedly "jettisoned itself politically from Europe" following the onset of its special military operation in Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Earlier, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said that Russia remains an indivisible part of European history and culture. He stressed that European countries cannot "cancel Russia" and abruptly halt any dialogue with it on the topic of creating a European security architecture following the conclusion of the Ukrainian conflict.