Russia-EU Energy Dialogue focused on important practical challenges - ambassador
BRUSSELS. May 30 (Interfax) - Energy cooperation between Russia and the European Union is oriented strictly towards practical goals and is one of the most important components of Russia-EU relations in general, Russian Ambassador to the EU Vladimir Chizhov said.
On Thursday, Chizhov participated in the ongoing international conference 'Energy Dialogue Russia - EU: Gas Aspect' in Brussels, which was organized by the Russian gas community and the EU gas industry.
"If we're talking about some of the practical aspects of work between the EU and Russia, specifically in the gas sphere, I would like to note that the activities of the working group to develop proposals on the functioning of the OPAL gas pipeline are ongoing, although not yet finished," Chizhov told Interfax in an interview.
Negotiations on this gas pipeline, which is located in Germany and should receive gas from Nord Stream, are still under way, so it is too early to go into details, he said.
"The importance of this story has been declared by both sides, which are working on reaching an agreement for the purpose of determining the optimal conditions for the gas pipeline's work," Russia's ambassador to the EU said.
"The Russian draft agreement on the status of main gas pipelines passing from Russia to the EU is still at the negotiating table," Chizhov said. "In its current form, priority is given to the most important aspects connected with Nord Stream and South Stream," he said.
Also on the agenda of the Russia-EU Energy Dialogue are Russia's conceptual proposals for building a new legal base for international energy cooperation, he said.
"As you know, the Russian side has prepared a draft convention to guarantee international energy security, and we continue to hope for a constructive discussion of the provisions in this document with our colleagues at the EU," Chizhov said.