According to Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko, the sailors were detained on the African Pride oil tanker detained on October 23, 2003.
"Lavrov requested providing a just trial as soon as possible over the detained sailors since, according to our information, the court hearings scheduled for the end of May have been once again put off until the end of July," he said.
According to Yakovenko, Lavrov also asked the Nigerian minister to improve the conditions of the detention facilities in light of the sailors' poor physical and mental status.
Adeniji promised to check the conditions of the detention facilities personally.
Adeniji, who is currently in Moscow as a special envoy of the African Union, recounted African countries' position on issues concerning UN reformation, including the Security Council. The sides underlined the importance of UN reformation in order to make the organization more effective and increase its role in international relations.
"The ministers hope that the 2005 Summit, which will be held September 14-16 in New York, will result in the adoption of decisions uniting countries, reflecting succession of aims and tasks of the Millennium Declaration and build-up of efforts for their implementation," Yakovenko said.
The ministers also touched upon a number of issues concerning bilateral relations and confirmed their interest in promotion of mutually beneficial Russian-Nigerian cooperation, Yakovenko said.
