"It will no exaggeration to say that, on the way how this partnership develops, the processes under way on the post-Soviet space, and the European continent in general, greatly depend", said Sergei Lavrov, appointed as the presidential representative in the parliamentary ratification of the Russian-Ukrainian treaties.
"Our relations with Ukraine are developing dynamically, becoming more stable and predictable. The course towards bilateral strategic partnership has been proclaimed and is in implementation. A meaningful political dialogue, above all the top level, is under way", he noted.
Lavrov said that Russian-Ukrainian interaction is based on a strong legal base, whose cornerstone is the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership between the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
At the same time, not everything in our relations can satisfy us. "We have drawn attention to the strengthening of what is called the Euroatlantic vector in the foreign policy of Ukraine in recent time, the expansion of its cooperation with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, and as before quite a few problems exist with the humanitarian rights of our compatriots", the Russian foreign minister said.
Still, he voiced conviction that the development of further work to strengthen strategic partnership between our countries should be active. This aim is in view in the ratification by the State Duma of the two Russian-Ukrainian treaties - on the state border and the joint use of the Azov-Kerch waters.
The Russian foreign minister gave a brief description of these two treaties.
The Treaty on the Russian-Ukrainian state border "removes a set of essential irritants". He noted that the coming into force of this document does not raise roadblocks in free communication between citizens of the two countries.
As regards the Treaty on the join use of the Azov-Kerch waters, Lavrov stressed that this document "seals for these waters the historically-shaped status of the inland waters of the two states". Lavrov specially noted the fact that this Treaty intends a ban on the emergence here of third countries' warships without the mutual consent of the members of the Treaty, which is topical in the context of NATO's expansion to the east.
In addition, Sergei Lavrov said that, in pursuance of the clauses of the Treaty, a package of documents on cooperation in navigation, fishing and border control is being developed. He also said that the establishment of railway-ferry communication between the Russian port Kavkaz and the Ukrainian port Kerch is under study.
