Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and U.S. President Barack Obama have “reset” bilateral relations “in a qualitative, not mathematical” way, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.
“It is a qualitative, not mathematical, reset,” Lavrov said.
“A new atmosphere has been created, an atmosphere of mutual respect that cerates no illusions based solely on personal relationships, but ensures mutual respect for interests and, most importantly, readiness to listen to each other,” Lavrov said.
All this is accompanied by “a good quality of personal relationship between the leaders of the two countries”.
Lavrov believes that Russia and Britain are committed to improving bilateral relations.
“Economic cooperation is evolving and trade turnover is growing. President Dmitry Medvedev and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown pointed this out today, too,” Lavrov said.
Both leaders “are committed to looking into the future and deriving mutual benefits from promising projects we are planning”, he said.
We should not allow disagreements of the past to obstruct mutually advantageous movement forward,” the minister added.
However Moscow and London continue to disagree on issues that marred bilateral relations in the past. “As for the issues that are well known to everyone, the positions have not changed,” he said.
“But no fixation registered previously could be see today,” Lavrov said.
