Russia, EU launch economic initiative
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The 25th summit between Russia and the European Union (EU) ended on Tuesday with a joint statement on the Partnership of Modernization, but no document was signed on the long-awaited lifting of the visa regime.
At a joint press conference after the summit talks, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso hailed the two-day summit as fruitful, open and friendly.
"In a world in which peoples and economies are ever more closely connected and interdependent, modernizing our economies and societies becomes ever more important and necessary," said the joint statement on the Partnership of Modernization.
The new initiative, part of the efforts to deepen strategic ties between Brussels and Moscow, will serve as "a flexible framework for promoting reform, enhancing growth and raising competitiveness," and will build on results achieved in the context of the four EU-Russia common spaces, said the statement.
The statement also outlined some priority areas for the Partnership of Modernization, such as the sectors of innovative investment, trade and economy, technical regulations and standards, energy efficiency and climate change.
The statement said both sides "have exchanged concepts within the context of the Partnership of Modernization," and "have tasked coordinators of both sides with developing a work plan."
Commenting on an agreement on protection of classified information between Russia and the EU, Medvedev said the document was a result of close collaboration on foreign security issues including fighting piracy.
Van Rompuy said the agreement would help in a wide range of issues from crisis management, justice to home affairs.
The EU and Russia also called for a full and impartial inquiry into the Israeli attack on a Gaza-bound international aid flotilla, in a declaration issued by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.
Later, both Medvedev and Van Rompuy reiterated their condemnation of Monday's attack and urged a thorough and unbiased investigation.
Visa-free travel
However, the summit failed to sign any document on the possible "roadmap" of visa-tree travel between Russia and the EU.
Instead, Russia submitted a draft agreement to its European partners, which Medvedev hoped could become "the first block of the foundation of visa abolition in the interests of millions of Europeans."
"This step would cement the strategic partnership between Russia and the EU, and make life easier for millions of people," Medvedev told the press conference.
"We must honestly accept the truth and assess the EU's readiness to handle this problem," he added.
Van Rompuy voiced hope that the "long-term goal" for European and Russian citizens could make "concrete progress as soon as possible."
In response to a question concerning the visa waiver program, Medvedev said the failure to agree on terms of visa-free travel was partly because each of the 27 EU member states has their own opinion about visa abolition.
Michael Webb, deputy head of the EU delegation, said Monday the complete waiving of visas may take years, since most EU countries see too many obstacles for visa-free travel between Europe and Russia.
The main concerns were counterfeit passports and organized criminal groups, which would use Russia as a corridor to EU countries, the official said.
Other issues Russian and EU leaders discussed included global efforts to tackle the financial and economic crisis and climate change, energy security and efficiency, the green economy, Russia's protracted bid to join the World Trade Organization.
The Rostov-on-Don summit was the first top-level meeting between Russia and the EU under the Lisbon Treaty.
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