MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Europe must be united.
"The European Union remains our most important trading partner, and due to economic, cultural, geographical and historical reasons, Russia is interested in a stable, prosperous, and safe Europe," Titov said.
Earlier Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow hopes that the European Union will not be led by a "group of Russophobes" and will move toward policy of normalizing relations with Russia. He also added that Moscow is not interested in the collapse of the European Union, and wants to see it strong and independent.
Brussels-Moscow relations have deteriorated after Crimea rejoined Russia in early 2014 after a vast majority of the peninsula's citizens voted in favor of the move during a referendum. The European Union and the United States also imposed a series of sanctions on Russia over its alleged involvement in the conflict between the Kiev authorities and the militia in the east of Ukraine, a claims Moscow has repeatedly denied.
