Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is ready to improve diplomatic relations with all European countries without exception recently.
According to a report by the TASS news agency, Putin stressed that Moscow remains committed to diplomacy and is ready to restore relations to a level appropriate to European countries.
He also said that Russia has always been committed to dialogue and cooperation based on mutual interests.
“As I have said before, Russia is open to mutually beneficial cooperation with all countries,” Putin said, wanting to turn a new page in international relations, despite persistent geopolitical tensions.
Nevertheless, the context of Russian-European relations remains tense. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, relations with some European countries have become the worst since the Cold War and evidence of normal relations is still not visible in practice.
In his statement, Putin himself noted that official and business relations between Moscow and certain European countries have cooled.
Several European leaders have called for continued dialogue with Russia, including the idea of appointing special envoys for direct talks.
However, governments in Brussels and other capitals have also warned that genuine negotiations will remain difficult to achieve as long as security issues such as the war in Ukraine are not resolved.
The geopolitical backdrop remains important, with Russia's relations with Europe continuing to be affected by the war in Ukraine and the intensified sanctions by the EU and other Atlantic allies against Moscow.
However, there have also been European moves to tighten visa requirements for Russian citizens, reflecting a far from normal atmosphere in relations.
