The European Union said on Monday it remained ready to sign a trade agreement with Ukraine, despite a snub by President Viktor Yanukovich, and it tried to reassure Moscow that closer EU-Ukraine relations posed no threat to Russia.
Brussels also sought to paper over apparent divisions in its approach to Ukraine, as the Dutch foreign minister slapped down a senior EU official for announcing on Twitter that he had suspended work on the trade pact.
Yanukovich stunned the EU last month by abandoning at the last moment plans to sign a far-reaching trade and cooperation pact with the 28-nation bloc in favor of closer ties with Russia.
His decision to spurn the so-called association agreement triggered mass protests in Ukraine, which is close to bankruptcy. It also prompted angry exchanges, with Brussels and Moscow accusing each other of pressuring Kiev.
EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels said the door remained open to closer EU-Ukraine ties and they tried to clear the air with Moscow at lunchtime talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
"Ministers confirmed again today the EU's readiness to sign the association agreement ... as soon as Ukraine is ready and the relevant conditions are met," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton told a news conference after the talks.
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