Putin in Portugal for EU-Russia summit - by Oleg Shchedrov
Russian President Vladimir Putin hopes for a friendly summit with the European Union on Friday but is sticking to long-held tough positions on Iran and Kosovo. "On many (international) issues our positions are close," Putin said after meeting Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva, whose country will host the EU-Russia summit. "I expect a friendly atmosphere created by our hosts today will translate into a similar atmosphere of the Russia-EU summit tomorrow and will help a productive work," Putin told reporters.
Another point of discussion at the summit will be a proposal by the European Commission on the energy sector, including a break up of big utilities' grip on power supply, generation and transmission. The plan includes a clause to prevent foreign firms from buying pipelines and power grids if their home countries do not have equally open markets and an agreement with Brussels, something seen as targeting Russian state energy giant Gazprom.
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