After the talks with Medvedev, Belgium's Prime Minister Charles Michel said that the EU had made a decision not to support the extending of sanctions against Russia.
At the same time, he noted that there is a certain amount of disagreement between Russia and the EU, however, "dialogue is open, because dialogue is the only way to manage differences and in order to better understand the different processes, so that there is more stability," he added.
Visite officielle à Moscou pour plaider pour un dialogue franc et ouvert dans l’intérêt de l’Europe, de la Russie et de la Belgique. #Russia #Belgium #begov pic.twitter.com/JZIA6T6MJK
— Charles Michel (@CharlesMichel) January 29, 2018
Medvedev has welcomed the stance of Belgium's prime minister characterizing it as "right and pragmatic" and stressed that "Russia appreciates its Belgian partners," while Michel's visit "shows that Belgium is ready to play a more active role in restoring full-fledged relations between Russia and the EU."
He also added that Russia and Belgium have potential for the creation of joint ventures in a number of fields, including the pharmaceutical, energy and the aerospace industries.
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In 2014, crisis in the eastern Ukraine and the Crimea's reunification with Russia prompted the EU to back the anti-Russian sanctions introduced by the US. Among the adopted sanctions were diplomatic measures, such as suspension of the EU-Russia talks on visa matters, individual restrictive measures, such as asset freeze and travel bans for some Russian nationals, as well as economic sanctions.
The economic sanctions are currently prolonged until July 31, 2018.