OREANDA-NEWS. September 5, 2008. At the talks held in Moscow with Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the two discussed the most topical international problems, particularly in the context of Russian-Belgian interaction within the UN Security Council. Special attention was devoted to European security issues, Russia-NATO and Russia-EU relations, and cooperation in the OSCE.

There was given on the Russian side a principled assessment of the recent events in the Caucasus, caused by the Georgian aggression against South Ossetia. It was stressed that Russia’s recognition of the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia was the only possible solution, which will enable reliably ensuring the security of their peoples. Russia consistently stands for full implementation of the settlement plan agreed by the presidents of Russia and France.

Different aspects of Russian-Belgian bilateral relations were examined. The ministers were unanimous in the view about the need for the early adoption of the next Russia-Belgium Joint Action Program 2008-2011. The sides spoke for developing mutually advantageous bilateral economic, scientific-technical and cultural cooperation energetically.