Brussels, 07/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - Russia's decision to suspend imports of fresh vegetables from all EU countries due to the deadly E.Coli outbreak (EHEC bacteria) could cast a shadow over the EU-Russia summit to be held on Thursday 9 and Friday 10 June in Nizhny Novgorod. The Russian ambassador to the EU, Vladimir Chizov, who was speaking to journalists on Tuesday 7 June, reiterated the fact that Moscow would only lift the ban on imports once the EU had identified the source of contamination and taken adequate measures to dissipate Russian fears. This will not be the case before the summit, contrary to what Europeans had hoped. “We need full information on the origin of the contamination and the geographical spread as well as on the measures taken within the EU that would exclude the possibility of transfer of contaminated vegetables into Russia. Unfortunately, at this time, we have no clear picture of the situation”, the Russian ambassador said. Chizov also slammed the EU's information policy, saying: “When the outbreak started, Russia received no information”. In the past, in similar cases, the European Union Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) worked well but “not this time”, he criticised. He refuted the criticism of the European Commission that considers measures taken by Russia are out of proportion. “The problem is not the Russian ban, but the disease that has struck many EU countries”, he said. At the same time, Chizov underlined that Moscow did not intend to keep the suspension on imports in place for ever and that the measure could be applied with greater selectivity. If the EU can give Russia “credible guarantees” that specific categories of vegetables or vegetables from specific geographic areas of the EU are risk-free, then “I would not rule out that the ban could be reduced or regionalised”, the Russian ambassador said.
Dialogue is launched on migration policy. EHEC bacteria will not be the only important item on the agenda of the summit. Leaders on both sides - President Dmitri Medvedev and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the Russian side, and Herman Van Rompuy, José Manuel Barroso, Catherine Ashton and Karel de Gucht on the European side - will also take stock of the state of bilateral EU-Russia relations. Discussion will turn in particular to talks underway on a new strengthened partnership agreement, the gradual creation of four “common spaces”, and the setting in place of the “partnership for modernisation” launched last year (on this last point, a progress report from coordinators will be approved). Russians and Europeans will also announce the beginning of dialogue on migration issues. In this major field, it is in the interest of both parties to work together and exchange views and experience, Chizov said. A first dialogue meeting is already scheduled for 27 June in Moscow. Talks underway on defining common steps with a view to future visa liberalisation are in the “finalisation phase” but the “common steps” may not be approved during the summit, the Russian ambassador confirmed. In the section on international issues, the summit will above all discuss the situation in North Africa and the Middle East (including the Israeli-Palestinian peace process), the Iranian nuclear programme, the Balkans, Transnistria and the South Caucasus. The international economic and financial crisis and the follow-up to be given to the recent G8 summit in Deauville will also be debated. (H.B./transl.jl)