MOSCOW – Russia's top diplomat blamed the European Union Monday for a freeze in ties but argued that Moscow remains ready to mend relations if it hears positive signals from the bloc.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said after talks in St. Petersburg with his Finnish counterpart, Pekka Haavisto, that “if the EU decides that it's necessary to restore relations, we will be ready for it." Lavrov's statement followed his warning last week that Moscow was ready for a split with the 27-nation bloc if Brussels moves to introduce new crippling sanctions that would hurt the Russian economy.
Russian-EU ties, which sank to post-Cold War lows after Moscow's 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea and support for separatist insurgents in eastern Ukraine,