Ukraine has called on Russia to respect its desire to enter the European Union, Ukrainian foreign minister Konstantin Hryschenko said.
"We believe that Ukraine is an integral part of Europe and we are confident that Russia is an integral part of the big European space. It’s up to Russia to enter or not to enter [the EU]," Hryschenko told Ekho Moskvy on Thursday.
"We respect its choice and we are operating under the assumption that our Russian friends will respect our choice," he said.
"I don’t see any contradiction between our desire to become an integral part of Europe and our wish to be a real strategic partner of Russia. I see synergism in that," Hryschenko said.
