Lithuania hopes to establish a reciprocal relationship with Russia, Lithuanian Prime Minister Gediminas Kirkilas said Thursday, according to news reaching here from Vilnius.
Lithuania hopes to develop its ties with Russia on a positive track, said Kirkilas in an interview with local radio.
He expressed Lithuania's willingness to make efforts to build friendly and economically reciprocal Lithuania-Russia ties.
At its late April foreign ministers' meeting in Luxembourg, the European Union failed to agree on a mandate to start talks with Russia on enrolling the latter into a "strategic partnership" due to lingering objections from Lithuania.
Lithuania, a former Soviet Union republic, has indicated that it will only agree to start negotiations for such a partnership if Moscow fixes a pipeline to supply a Lithuanian refinery with crude oil.
It also demands Russia's assurances on judicial cooperation with Lithuania regarding some problems left over by history such as compensation for Lithuanians deported to Siberia by Stalin's regime and on policy for solving Moscow's disputes with other former Soviet republics, notably Georgia and Moldova.
Lithuania's stand on the strategic partnership has yet to win support from other EU countries, who hope to broker a compromise next week ahead of a summit in Siberia in June.
Source:Xinhua
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