"Relations between Russia and Austria, in spite of all the difficulties we have been facing recently, are developing and are of great importance to us. We have always given special importance to our trade and economic ties. Unfortunately, as a result of the difficulties, which I have already mentioned, we have seen a significant decline in [mutual] turnover by almost 25 percent. Although, Russian exports to Austria, surprisingly, slightly increased over the past year," Putin said at a meeting with his Austrian counterpart Heinz Fischer.
The Russian leader suggested discussing most pressing issues of the international agenda and bilateral relations at multilateral platforms, including the European Union.
Russian-Austrian trade declined due to overall deterioration of Moscow-EU relations after the European Union and its allies imposed sanctions on Russia over alleged meddling in the Ukrainian crisis. The claims have been continuously refuted by Moscow.
