Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy at his presidential residence near Moscow on Tuesday and expressed hope to further bilateral relations.
"France has been, is and, I hope, will continue to be one of our main partners in Europe and the world. Our relations are developing successfully," Putin said at the informal meeting with Sarkozy, who arrived in Moscow early Tuesday for a two-day visit.
They held a short conservation and had dinner at Putin's presidential residence of Novo-Ogaryovo near Moscow.
They were expected to hold official talks on Wednesday and the topics will range from economy and investment to international issues such as Iraq and Iran's nuclear issue, Kremlin said.
The Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) treaty, U.S. missile defense plans, the Middle East situation and Russia-EU relations were also on the list, presidential aide Sergei Prikhodko said.
Russian-French trade increased 13.9 percent to 6.8 billion U.S. dollars in the first half of 2007 and the two states were also interested in nuclear energy cooperation, said Prikhodko. Energy supplies account for a large portion of Russia's exports to France.
Moscow threatened to pull out of the CFE arms control treaty after the United States launched plans to deploy anti-missile components in central Europe, alleging that most NATO members have not approved a ratified edition of the treaty.
On the Iranian nuclear issue, France is in favor of tougher sanctions against Iran, which was alleged by the West to be developing nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear program, while Russia opposes a hard-line stance against Tehran.
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article