British Foreign Secretary David Miliband arrives in Russia on a visit. He was invited by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Following the five-year interval, caused by the cooling of relations between Moscow and London, the Foreign Office chief visits the Russian capital for the first time.
In the meantime, the United Kingdom came to the conclusion that it is not interested in having a low level of relations with Russia in an number of important areas, including the political dialogue, economic cooperation, orchestration of efforts in the struggle against international terrorism and crime.
Moreover, London admits that limitations on relations with Russia, imposed by Britain, over “the Litvinenko case”, remaining a riddle up to this time, have led to a threat of progressing isolation of the United Kingdom both in international affairs and in the EU.
As a result, London drew a conclusion already last year that Britain risks to lose considerable part of its influence in the world and to limit its economic possibilities without restoring large-scale relations with Russia.
Miliband personally already confirmed the fact of creating new conditions when he said this week that he would fly to Moscow in order “to reset” relations with Russia, following the U.S. suit.
Ahead of his visit to Moscow Mr. Miliband said in an interview with the Financial Times that he hoped for a meaningful discussion with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. The agenda includes Afghanistan, Iran and the Middle East. At the same time, Mr. Miliband noted that he didn’t expect to solve the key problems in bilateral relations during his visit to Moscow.
