Italian Chamber of Deputies speaker favors lifting of anti-Russian sanctions
MOSCOW. March 5 (Interfax) - Europe needs to cooperate with Russia, but anti-Russian sanctions hamper such cooperation, Italian Chamber of Deputies President Roberto Fico has said.
"Europe should stay united and should cooperate with Russia on international platforms," Fico said at a session of the Russian State Duma on Tuesday.
This cooperation ought to develop on the basis of principles of international organizations which include member states, he said.
"Italy hopes that Russia will contribute to efforts to resolve crises that we encounter," he said.
"This also includes the situation in the Middle East and North Africa. But we're talking primarily about Syria and the need to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," Fico said.
"All participants in the political process must abide by international law, and, of course, all of them should not interpret it in their own way," he said.
A top priority is to "overcome the sanctions" imposed on Russia, Fico said.
In commenting on the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, Fico said "it is necessary to understand that scrapping it [the INF Treaty] is a setback" in security efforts.