Russia, EU leaders to hold summit amid 'crisis'
Friday, May 18, 2007
TENSIONS mounted hours before the start of a Russia-EU summit yesterday where leaders from the two sides were set to wrestle over relations that Poland said had reached a "crisis".
Russian President Vladimir Putin was due to open a two-day summit with EU leaders at a picturesque resort on the Volga River, though a series of rows between Moscow and EU members left the results very much in doubt.
Poland has warned that it will maintain a veto on talks over a new EU-Russia partnership agreement unless all 27 EU members form a united front on the issue of energy security and Moscow's ban on imports of Polish meat.
"European Union members understand us. So, in a sense, there is a situation of crisis in relations between the European Union and Russia," Polish Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga said yesterday in an interview with Polish public television.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, current holder of the European Union's six-month rotating presidency, and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso were due to meet Putin at a working dinner later yesterday.
The summit's main talks were set for today at the Volzhsky Utyos (Volga Cliff) spa complex, but the agenda was limited because of ongoing diplomatic disputes.
European Union officials said talks would touch on international issues such as the future status of Kosovo and Iran's nuclear programme, as well as Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO) this year.AFP
Russian President Vladimir Putin was due to open a two-day summit with EU leaders at a picturesque resort on the Volga River, though a series of rows between Moscow and EU members left the results very much in doubt.
Poland has warned that it will maintain a veto on talks over a new EU-Russia partnership agreement unless all 27 EU members form a united front on the issue of energy security and Moscow's ban on imports of Polish meat.
"European Union members understand us. So, in a sense, there is a situation of crisis in relations between the European Union and Russia," Polish Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga said yesterday in an interview with Polish public television.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, current holder of the European Union's six-month rotating presidency, and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso were due to meet Putin at a working dinner later yesterday.
The summit's main talks were set for today at the Volzhsky Utyos (Volga Cliff) spa complex, but the agenda was limited because of ongoing diplomatic disputes.
European Union officials said talks would touch on international issues such as the future status of Kosovo and Iran's nuclear programme, as well as Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO) this year.AFP
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