BERLUSCONI FAVORS RUSSIA JOINING EU

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.10.2008 16:09 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said
Wednesday that he is in favor of Russia becoming a member of the
European Union, a "vision" he has held for several years.

"I consider Russia to be a Western country and my plan is for the
Russian Federation to be able to become a member of the European
Union in the coming years," Berlusconi told reporters in Brussels.

He said that first of all the European Union should resume talks with
Moscow on a partnership agreement that was suspended following a war
between Russia and Georgia in August.

"I want to go further. I have had this vision for years," Berlusconi
said as he arrived in Brussels for an EU summit, AFP reports.

The European Union earlier this week deferred a decision on when
to restart talks with Moscow, saying it wanted to see more evidence
Russia would stick to a ceasefire deal with Georgia.