Russian Foreign Ministry 'surprised' by Borrell's statements made after Moscow visit

Borrell visited Moscow on January 4-6. During the visit, he had a wide-ranging discussion on EU-Russia relations and the global geopolitical landscape with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Borrell also met with representatives of the civil society.

"Possibly, upon his arrival in Brussels, the EU foreign policy chief was told what kind of highlights he should make, but then this only proves who is actually behind EU policy," a Russian foreign ministry spokesperson told journalists when asked about Borrell's comments on social media.

Borrell said in a blog post after his return from Moscow that "Russia is progressively disconnecting itself from Europe and looking at democratic values as an existential threat." However, when speaking in Moscow, the EU foreign policy chief said that although EU-Russian relations were far from satisfactory, diplomatic channels should remain open.

"We reviewed Borrell's assessments of the visit [to Russia] with surprise, they contrast strongly with his statements given at a press conference in Moscow," a Russian foreign ministry representative told journalists commenting on the remarks.

According to the Russian foreign ministry, Borrell was given an opportunity to give his assessment of the talks in Russia during the Moscow press conference and he used that opportunity. "Nobody limited him either in time or format," the ministry representative said.