Rome, 15/10/2010 (Agence Europe) - Alexei Konstantinovich Pushkov, the director of the Institute for Current International Problems at the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian foreign ministry, made a speech in Rome on 12 October in which he called on the European Union to be more active and more present on the international stage, with common positions on key issues of international relations “where the EU tends to neglect itself”. He explained in connection with Russia's relations with the EU that Russia has well-established relations with individual member states but finds it difficult to understand what the EU position is, since different countries have different views. He said that having a single position would greatly help the EU's foreign and security policy. He also said that the EU should be more present in strategic issues. Pushkov was addressing the IAI (Istituto Affari Internazionali), Italy's biggest thinktank. (G.B./transl.fl)