Vienna waits for the lifting of sanctions against Russia

On Wednesday, the Vice-Chancellor and Minister of Economy, Science and Research of Austria Reinhold Mitterlehner has concluded a two-day visit to Moscow, during which he met with the Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and attended a meeting of the bilateral intergovernmental commission. This Austrian guest showed a much more friendly attitude toward Moscow than most of his European counterparts. So during public appearances, he complained that his country can’t unilaterally lift the sanctions from Russia and recalled the role of Kiev in the implementation of the Minsk agreements on Donbas. And during a closed conversation with the Russian Prime Minister Reinhold Mitterlehner, according to the Kommersant’s information, acknowledged that the implementation of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project was prevented by "political views" of a number of EU countries, but assured that Austria supported this initiative.

The negotiations of Dmitry Medvedev and Reinhold Mitterlehner were held in the suburban residence of the Russian Prime Minister "Gorki" on Wednesday. Recalled abbout the bilateral trade turnover drops (in January-November 2015, the volume of the trade declined by a quarter and amounted to $2.878 billion), Dmitry Medvedev said that "Russia and Austria are partners" and "in the current very difficult economic situation" Moscow hopes not to lose the established communication.