Brussels, 29/04/2008 (Agence Europe) - On 28 April, in an interview with Voice of Russia reported by the Russian press agency, Itar-Tass, the director of the European cooperation department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Sergei Ryabkov, welcomed EU-Russia dialogue opened on energy cooperation. The Russian diplomat nonetheless stressed Moscow's concerns regarding the development of the EU's common energy policy, in particular new measures currently discussed in Europe aimed at completing liberalisation of the internal energy market. “Russia frankly states its concerns over the common energy policy of the European Union. We are worried by the wish of the European Union's structures to impose on their foreign partners the idea how these partners should be organised in order to get a possibility for investing in the European Union's energy sector”, Mr Ryabkov explained, referring to the question of ownership unbundling of production/provision activities and network/transport activities of energy operators and the provision - commonly called the “Gazprom clause” - that would impose the same ownership unbundling rules on vertically integrated third country energy operators in order to limit access to the EU energy sector (EUROPE 9498 and 9505). “The common energy policy of the EU (…) is a key area of our cooperation, and for this reason we call on the partners to perceive our stance and to treat it with a maximum of seriousness and responsibility, as we treat the decisions that are made in the European Union”, Mr Ryabkov insisted, before going on to state that Russia “will continue the energy dialogue and work on respective points of the future treaty on strategic partnership”. The tone is set before the next meeting foreseen for mid-May between the Russian energy minister, Viktor Khristenko, and European Commissioner for Energy Andris Piebalgs. (E.H.)