Medvedev in Brussels for summit overshadowed by disputed election

Dec 15, 2011, 10:51 GMT

Brussels - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met with leading EU officials on Thursday for a bilateral summit expected to be overshadowed by opposition claims that recent parliamentary elections had been rigged.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin insisted during a live television conference earlier in the day that the elections 'unquestionably (and) realistically reflect the political situation in the country.'

But the European Union's foreign policy chief, who was set to participate in the Brussels talks, this week acknowledged concerns about the exclusion of opposition parties, the lack of media freedom and the detention of protesters.

Catherine Ashton said the elections would be brought up at Thursday's summit, which will include EU President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, along with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

The European Parliament on Wednesday called in a resolution for Russia to hold a new round of 'free and fair elections' and conduct investigations into any fraud claims.

'Human rights and the freedom of expression cannot be played around with,' its president, Jerzy Buzek, said in a statement. 'The European Parliament wants a serious partner that shares our values of the rule of law, freedom and justice.'

But Moscow downplayed the importance of the issue, noting that the disputed elections were not on the summit's agenda.

From the Russian point of view, the state of the global economy and energy issues were the leading subjects for the meeting, including the EU's so-called Third Energy Package, which Russia sees as an attack on its major energy companies.

Foreign affairs were also expected to feature prominently.

The EU planned to raise Russia's resistance to United Nations condemnation of Syria for its opposition crackdown, while Moscow was intent on discussing Kosovo and its aid deliveries to the Serb minority there.

Russia also want to see progress on negotiations over easier travel to the EU for its citizens, who currently require visas.

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