Russia is interested in comprehensive cooperation with Ukraine, Itar-Tass quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying at the meeting with heads of the two countries' border regions on Wednesday. “We would like economy to dominate in the Russian-Ukrainian interstate relations, and the two countries' authorities to eliminate political discrepancies not to hamper our cooperation,” he said. “The dependence from political fluctuations could have been much less if we moved towards the creation of joint ventures focusing on small and medium businesses.” Lavrov expressed the hope for an effective dialogue within the framework of the current meeting. “This will be an important conversation taking into account the fact that Russian-Ukrainian relations have seen better days,” Lavrov said. “We would like this period to pass over as soon as possible.” The diplomat expressed confidence that Russia and Ukraine “can and should be not only good neighbors, but also reliable business partners.” “Thus, we will be able to face acute modern challenges and overcome impacts of the global economic crisis,” he said. Lavrov called “for finding necessary compromises and bringing the Russian-Ukrainian cooperation to the level of European and global importance.” “Our countries have more than enough opportunities for this,” he said. “Russia is interested in comprehensive cooperation with Ukraine.”
