Videos
Translation (original)
Translation (original)
Speeches by Minister
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s opening remarks at talks with Foreign Minister of the Netherlands Stef Blok, Moscow, April 13, 2018
Mr Minister,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Colleagues,
We are happy to welcome you to Moscow.
Our relations have a very long history, dating back to the times of Peter I. So we feel the humanitarian and historical groundwork of our centuries-long ties.
Today, the Netherlands is a very important trade and economic partner for us. Last year our trade amounted to $40 billion, while Dutch accumulated investment in the Russian economy is even over $40 billion. Major Dutch companies are operating in Russia – I believe Shell has been here for 125 years. There are also Unilever and Phillips. I think this impressive package of economic, humanitarian and cultural contacts meets the interests of our countries and peoples.
Recently, our relations have been tested due to the events that followed the coup in Ukraine and that continue fueling the Russophobia campaign in the West. Because of this situation, our political contacts and ties between the relevant agencies have been frozen, not at our initiative. Russia always favours a respectful and mutually beneficial course for cooperation with any country, including the Netherlands. We believe that interruptions in our political contacts are not in our common interests.
We very much appreciate your current visit to the Russian Federation. Incidentally, contacts between our ministries at the deputy and department director levels have not been broken off in the past few years. We regularly hold important and useful consultations. Naturally, now that the Netherlands has become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, this experience will come in handy.
Incidentally, I would like to congratulate you on a very specific and meaningful presidency of the UN Security Council last month. Now, we hope to discuss bilateral, regional and international issues. Many of these issues have been accumulating and they are not becoming any simpler. This is why we appreciate this opportunity.
Welcome!
Comments and statements by Foreign Ministry Spokesman
Comments and statements by Foreign Ministry Spokesman
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23 April 201816:20Comment by the Information and Press Department on a terrorist attack in Afghanistan
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19 April 201820:33Comment by the Information and Press Department on the issuance of US entry visas
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26 March 201813:30Comment by the Information and Press Department regarding missiles launched at Saudi cities from the territory of Yemen
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21 March 201816:56Comment by the Information and Press Department regarding the latest terrorist attacks on Damascus
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22 February 201821:24Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s comment on the results of his visit to Serbia, Belgrade, February 22, 2018
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17 January 201816:07Comment by the Information and Press Department regarding statements by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on the Macedonian parliament passing the Law on the Use of Languages
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17 January 201815:56Comment by the Information and Press Department on the terrorist attacks in Baghdad
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16 January 201817:24Comment by the Information and Press Department on the murder of Serbian politician Oliver Ivanovic in the Autonomous Province of Kosovo, Serbia
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10 January 201814:09Comment by the Information and Press Department on the outcome of a high-level inter-Korean meeting
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Briefing of the Foreign Ministry Spokesman
Briefing of the Foreign Ministry Spokesman
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19 April 201818:03Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Moscow, April 19, 2018
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12 April 201821:38Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Moscow, April 12, 2018
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4 April 201819:17Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Moscow, April 4, 2018
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29 March 201818:29Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Moscow, March 29, 2018
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23 March 201813:38Briefing by Deputy Director of the Information and Press Department Artyom Kozhin, Moscow, March 23, 2018
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21 March 201821:29Briefing by Director of the Foreign Ministry Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Vladimir Yermakov, Moscow, March 21, 2018
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21 March 201821:29Briefing by Director of the Foreign Ministry Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Vladimir Yermakov, Moscow, March 21, 2018
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2 November 201714:00A joint briefing of the MFA, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Industry and Trade, Moscow, November 2, 2017
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30 August 201709:36Interview of the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the Council of Europe Ivan Soltanovsky
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4 May 201717:48Speech by General Director Sergey Vyazalov at a gala marking the 72nd anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War, Moscow, May 4, 2017
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2 September 201611:44Press release on Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov’s address to the Russia-ASEAN University Forum, Vladivostok, September 2, 2016
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