MOSCOW, July 2. /TASS/. It will be difficult for the European Union to find a suitable candidate for negotiations with Russia, since such a person should not be linked to anti-Russian policies, Russian Federation Council Deputy Speaker Konstantin Kosachev told TASS.
"This [possible negotiations], should certainly imply that there is a person on the one side, who meets two requirements: on the one hand, this person must possess sufficient authority in Europe, and on the other, he or she must have sufficient credibility here in Russia, which means he or she should not be associated with that former at a minimum, it is incorrect, and at a maximum, it is a criminal policy that the European Union has been practicing in recent years in relation to our country, including in the context of the Ukrainian crisis," Kosachev stated.
"It is a very difficult task to find such a person," the Russian senator said.
Kosachev recalled that earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin hinted on former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder as the preferred candidate for possible negotiations between the European Union and Russia, but the EU ignored this proposal, considering the politician "as insufficient in his authority."
"Try finding a European politician who would be authoritative enough for us, but at the same time would not be sharing responsibility for the steps taken by current European politicians. I suspect that this task will prove impossible for Europe," Kosachev added.