The 27-nation bloc announced on September 1 that it had suspended talks on the pact with Russia due to the presence of Russian troops in Georgia more than two weeks after the end of a brief war with the South Caucasus state over breakaway South Ossetia. The EU said it would not resume the talks until Russia pulled all its troops in Georgia back to their pre-conflict positions.
Although Moscow completed its troop pullout from buffer zones in Georgia in October, questions remain over the scale of its presence in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, another disputed province.
In a joint statement, U.K. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said, "We believe that the EU should be clear about the basis on which it is resuming the negotiations."
"We are not returning to business as usual, nor are we turning the page on the conflict in Georgia. The EU will stick to the tough mandate that has been agreed for the negotiations," the statement said.
"Russia's disproportionate actions in the summer against Georgia" had, the statement also read, "changed the character and atmosphere of the EU's cooperation and political dialogue with Moscow."
Miliband also said the EU would not reward Russia's "bad behavior".
The foreign ministers stressed however the need to resume talks on the partnership deal with Russia.
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said there was a "possibility," that the talks could resume soon, adding that, "I hope very much that will be the case."
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov welcomed the willingness of the EU to reopen talks, telling the Finnish newspaper Helsingen Sanomat that, "We want durable, long-lasting and close relations with the EU as a strategic partner."
The presidents of Poland and Lithuania have said the EU should delay resuming talks on a new EU partnership and cooperation pact with Moscow until Russia meets all its commitments under the EU-brokered peace plan, including on troop levels in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, republics that Russia recognized as independent states on August 26.
The Russia-EU summit is due to be held in Nice, France, on November 14.
The first round of talks on a new wide-ranging deal between Russia and the EU was held in July. The agreement is set to replace the 1997 Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, which was extended for a year when it expired in December 2007. The talks were delayed over earlier disputes between Russia and EU members Poland and Lithuania. The second round of talks was to have taken place on September 16.
