As foreign ministers of the European Union (EU) member states meet in Brdo on Friday, the Middle East peace process and the 27-nation bloc's tricky relations with Russia are high on their agenda.

The informal meeting, which lasts until Saturday, will open with an in-depth discussion on the Middle East, in which EU foreign ministers will examine the Middle East peace process and the situation in Lebanon, the role of Syria, Iran and the activities of terrorist organizations, according to the EU presidency Slovenia.

For the first day, EU foreign ministers are also scheduled to pick up the issue of relations between the EU and Russia, which has been clouded by disruptions in energy supply, the deadlock in launching negotiations for a new partnership agreement and their most recent rift on the self-declared independence of Kosovo.

The Slovenian government said the discussions were designed to make preparations for a EU-Russia summit to take place in Siberia in June. It will be the first summit for the EU to meet with Russian President-elect Dmitry Medvedev.

Friday's discussions will include an assessment of the situation after the recent presidential elections in Russia and mutual cooperation in general.

Ljubljana pinned its hope on the up-coming summit to get negotiations launched on a new comprehensive EU-Russia partnership agreement covering trade, energy, human rights and political cooperation.

The start of the talks was effectively blocked by Poland and Lithuania since Russia imposed a two-year ban on Polish meat supplies and cut off oil supplies to a Lithuanian refinery which was sold to a Polish company rather than a Russian rival.

The Polish government has recently agreed to drop its opposition after Russia lifted its ban, but Lithuania remained to be persuaded.

On Saturday, talks among EU foreign ministers will be devoted to the efforts to consolidate peace and stability in the Western Balkans and to revive the Thessaloniki Agenda with which, in 2003, the EU had assured all the Western Balkans countries of a future in Europe, i.e. EU membership, subject to fulfilling the necessary conditions.

Ministers or representatives from the Western Balkan region were expected to participate, but the Slovenian government has scheduled separate meetings with the Serbian foreign minister and representatives of other partners, including Kosovo.

The two-day meeting will conclude with a lunch, at which the main topic will be intercultural dialogue, one of the Slovenian Presidency's priorities in 2008, the year the EU has designated the Year of Intercultural Dialogue.

Particularly in an area in which people of different nationalities, cultures and religions live together, the EU should promote dialogue with a view to establishing diversity as a shared value, the EU presidency said.

(Xinhua News Agency March 28, 2008)