Chizhov: Russia ready to revive dialogue with EU

Russia is ready to revive dialogue with the European Union but it remains unclear when the European Union itself will be ready for that, Russian Permanent Representative to the EU Vladimir Chizhov said.

"Once again, I say that we are ready for dialogue with the European Union; Russia is known to have never closed doors [for negotiations] ... When will the European Union become ready for the revival of dialogue with Russia? Honestly speaking, I do not know", Sputnik cited Chizhov as saying.

He noted that Moscow is ready for former formats of cooperation with Brussels, but may also consider new ones, stressing that the sides should base on "mutual respect equality and the joint responsibility for the future of our continent".

"We are ready for resuming the formats of cooperation we had before the current crisis. At the same time, we do not speak about the automatic revival of the whole dialogue architecture, which existed in the past. It is necessary to jointly assess new forms of cooperation in a creative way, if necessary," the envoy stressed.

According to Chizhov, however, the union's current doctrine shaping relations with Moscow has no consideration for the common interests of Russia and the EU.

"What we read in the official statements of the recent EU Council Summit demonstrates that the EU is still committed to the notorious 'five principles' in relations with Russia. Today, they are obviously not in line with the mutual interest and do not take into account the current developments," the diplomat said.