"We do not expect something more than is fixed in the joint statement of Russia and the European Union of April 27", the Russian minister told the news conference in The Hague.
He recalled the statement as recognising that the problem of rights of ethnic minorities should be given sufficient attention.
"On the practical plane, it means that Latvia and Estonia should fulfil the recommendations of the OSCE, PACE and other European organisations. We want the convention on the protection of rights of ethnic minorities be ratified (by Latvia and Estonia) as Lithuania has done", Lavrov said.
He noted that the other day Latvia was visited by the PACE ethnic minorities reporter Rolf Ekeus. He confirmed the need of speeding up the process of naturalisation of non-title citizens in Latvia and doing everything for citizens and non-citizens, which are many, may participate in municipal elections.
"The European organisations have issued a set of recommendations. It is the position of Russia that they must be abided by. We do not want anything beyond these recommendations and a normal approach to people", the Russian minister stressed.
In turn, the Netherlands Foreign Minister Bernard Bot also noted that the European Union emphasises the importance of integration and naturalisation of ethnic minorities in Estonia and Latvia. "We agree that these questions have to be discussed and these Russian concerns taken into account. These problems are to be discussed with the Estonian and Latvian partners for finding a constructive solution", Bot said.
