Both Mr Kozak and Ms Hübner participated in the seminar “Strategic and governance aspects of regional policy”, held as part of a Russia-EU agreement signed in May last year.
-I believe that the regions are capable of offering significant contributions to the development of Russia-EU relations, Commissioner Hübner says in an interview with Nezavisimaya Gazeta, adding that “without the involvement of the regional level of power and the establishment of human contacts, it will be impossible to achieve concrete results”.
-We have to give our regions and our municipalities the chance to work together on a daily basis, the commissioner says, adding that “our cooperation can not only unfold only on government level”.
In the interview, Ms Hübner also underlined that there is a major need for better understanding in the EU about Russian regional policies and the country’s approaches to minorities, as well as the development divides between cities and villages.
Read the whole interview with Nezavisimaya Gazeta
