Russia sees no alternative to new collective leader in world, Sergei Lavrov said

Itar-Tass
Sep. 18, 2006

LISBON, September 18 (Itar-Tass) - Russia does not see a reasonable alternative to the creation of a new collective leader comprising key, highly industrialized countries in the world, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an article published in the Portuguese newspaper Diario de Noticias over his two-day visit in Lisbon that will begin on Monday.

According to the minister, these key countries should be “representative in terms of geography and civilisation.” “The Group of Eight (G8) may become an important aspect of an informal mechanism of a new collective leader,” Lavrov pointed out.

Russia is ready to make a contribution in the creation of a new universal system that will be safer and democratic based on the principles of law and multilateral cooperation, Sergei Lavrov said.

“Abandoning the ideology of the past in favour of common sense,” now Russia has “a broad and unbiased view on all issues,” the minister emphasized.

The Russian foreign minister stressed “the independence of Russia’s foreign policy.” He called it “the main achievement of the last few years” and “the unconditional imperative” everybody should take into account.

“We will cooperate with all partners without discrimination and only with the position of full equality considering interests of each other and mutual benefits,” Lavrov remarked.

As long as Russia’s confidence in its possibilities is growing, “our country turned in the most predictable factor of international policy,” the foreign minister noted. He pledged that “Russia will take balanced positions in the future, act as an important factor of world diplomacy.”