Europe has offered Russia help in achieving...

The European Commission has drafted a program to aid Russia"s modernization drive, announced by President Dmitry Medvedev last year. It also said Moscow should ensure the rule of law for the efforts to be effective, Kommersant said, citing the EU office in Moscow and Russian diplomats in Europe.

Moscow approved the program"s economic and technological initiatives, but rejected what it called its lecturing on democratic values, the paper said.

"The program should be more focused on practical issues and contain no discussions of the benefits of European values," Russia"s ambassador to the European Union, Vladimir Chizhov, told the paper.

"We are thinking about technological exchanges, joint innovative projects with the EU... Not the relationship of a patron and the favored one," Chizhov said.

The European Commission outlined key areas of cooperation with Russia, which include efforts to ensure the rule of law, curb corruption and improve the investment climate,

Pages: [1] 2 3