MOSCOW, May 21 (RIA Novosti) - President Vladimir Putin suggested Monday the agriculture minister intensify his dialogue with the European Union, including over Polish meat.
Last November, Warsaw vetoed talks on a new Russia-EU cooperation agreement, expiring in late 2007, over Russia's ban on meat and other agricultural imports from Poland. Moscow cited health concerns, but Warsaw said the move was political.
"We have many problems with our own agriculture, and if production goes from third countries by transit, this creates additional problems that are far from small. Nevertheless, a solution needs to be found, and I am asking you to intensify the dialogue," Putin said at a meeting with Cabinet members.
"We should build relations in this sphere on a reciprocal basis. We understand problems in the EU - agricultural subsidies happen on a very large scale," Putin said, adding that part of subsidized products enter the Russian market.
Putin asked Gordeyev to remind him what agreements the EU and Russia have in the sphere.
"You have touched upon a very important topic. We have no legal base, and relations with the EU concerning veterinary controls are not settled," Gordeyev said.
The participants of a recent Russia-EU summit near the Russian Volga city of Samara discussed the Polish meat ban issue.
At the May 17-18 summit, Putin said the row between Russia and Poland over Moscow's ban on meat products from its former Eastern Bloc ally was a common economic issue rather than a political matter.
"We all know that there are many disputes within the EU, and between the EU, and other countries concerning agricultural issues," Putin said, adding that a common approach to resolving these issues should be developed and used by all concerned parties.
But the president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, said Russia's embargo on Polish meat imports was unjustified.
"If there were grounds [for an embargo], we would not allow Poland to circulate meat in the European Union," he said after the Friday summit.
The European Union's executive body said Monday it hoped to soon start talks with Russia on lifting an embargo on Polish meat supplies to Russia.
The European Commission's health spokesman, Philip Todd, said a proposal for "technical negotiations" had been sent to Russia's agriculture minister. He added that the date has not been agreed upon yet.
Gordeyev said earlier that Moscow will continue to "protect its market from low-quality meat production coming from Poland."
The European Commission has said there were no grounds for an embargo on Polish products, but has admitted that Poland made deviations from European regulations on meat exports.
The current Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) between Russia and the EU was signed in June 24, 1994 in Corfu, Greece. The document came into force on December 1, 1997 and expires this year.
