MOSCOW: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will hold talks with his Italian counterpart, Angelino Alfano. Their meeting in Moscow will be the second one since Alfano was appointed to the position in December 2016. Lavrov and Alfano first held talks on the sidelines of the G20 group ministerial meeting in Bonn in February.
“The Russian Foreign Ministry attaches great importance to developing dialogue and maintaining a high level of cooperation with Italy, one of Russia’s major political and economic partners in Western Europe,” the ministry said.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, during the talks it is planned to discuss the current state and prospects for Russian-Italian relations in politics, economy, science and technology.
“The two ministers will also discuss key international issues, including the situation in Syria, Libya, and Ukraine, efforts to counter international terrorism, cooperation with Italy in the UN Security Council and relations between Russia and the EU,” Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, told reporters.
She noted that special attention will be paid to intensifying cooperation between the two countries in culture, education and ties between the civil societies.
Moscow and Rome are trying to give an additional impetus to the mutually advantageous economic partnership, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
“The Italian leadership has shown interest in maintaining the vast potential of bilateral cooperation and continuing regular contacts, including top-level,” the ministry noted.
The ministry noted that the trade turnover between Russia and Italy decreased by 35.4% in 2016 compared to 2015.
