Tunisian FM calls bilateral relations with Russia great

TUNIS. Dec 21 (Interfax) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is holding negotiations with his Tunisian counterpart Nabil Ammar.

Lavrov said in his opening remarking that his current visit to Tunisia is an opportunity to discuss promising areas of bilateral cooperation, including economic and humanitarian areas and high technologies.

Ammar said, in turn, that Lavrov's visit is an important moment in bilateral relations, which "are already great."

"We do not want to develop relations with some partners to the detriment of others, we want to develop relations with everyone, and Russia is a very important partner of our country," Ammar said.

This principle also meets Russian traditions, Lavrov replied. "Russia never befriends anyone against others," he said.

"Unfortunately, the habit of befriending someone against others is characteristic of our Western colleagues. Yet I think life will put everything in its place, they will inevitably realize the need for peaceful coexistence in a multipolar world, which is being objectively formed, and one of the poles of which - we can already say with confidence - is the League of Arab States," Lavrov said.

Lavrov and Ammar had a one-on-one meeting before the talks.

Lavrov arrived in Tunisia on Wednesday, and the two ministers briefly met at the airport on Wednesday night.