Russian Foreign Ministry weekly briefing 26 May 2011.

Text of "Briefing by Russian MFA Spokesman Aleksandr Lukashevich, 26 May 2011", published in English on the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs website on 27 May. The subheadings are the website's own:

Upcoming CSTO foreign ministers' meeting

On 31 May, Minsk will host a regular meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

Participants will discuss issues of strengthening and increasing the effectiveness of the Organization in the context of implementing the decisions of the December 2010 session of the Collective Security Council of the CSTO. They will touch upon current topical issues in global and regional politics; the development of foreign policy cooperation among member states, particularly in the framework of their interaction with international and regional organizations; and the prospects for cooperation with the UN in peacekeeping activities.

The meeting will also examine a number of administrative and organizational matters. We will post more detailed information on the Russian MFA's website.

Foreign Minister Lavrov's upcoming talks with Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov

At the invitation of Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov, the minister of foreign affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria, Nikolay Mladenov, will be visiting Russia on 1-3 June.

During their talks, the heads of the foreign affairs agencies are scheduled to exchange views on a wide range of issues in Russian-Bulgarian cooperation. In particular, they will review the state of economic and trade ties, the progress of major investment projects in the energy sector, and cultural and humanitarian collaboration.

Special attention will be paid to topical international issues, as well as the situations in the Balkans and in the Black Sea region.

During the visit, several bilateral documents are planned to be signed.

Sergey Lavrov's upcoming working visit to Ukraine for the fifth meeting of the Subcommittee on International Cooperation of the Russian-Ukrainian Interstate Commission

The minister of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov, will make a working visit to Odessa, Ukraine, on 3-4 June for the fifth meeting of the Subcommittee on International Cooperation of the Russian-Ukrainian Interstate Commission.

The subcommittee has six active sub-commissions: on cooperation in dealing with new challenges and threats; on regional conflict settlement; on resolving the Azov-Kerch problem; on collaborative efforts in international organizations; and on border and consular issues.

The meeting will substantively discuss all matters within the competence of these sub-commissions, as well as other topical issues on the bilateral and international agenda.

Russia is ready for constructive dialogue with the Ukrainian side.

Russia, Ukraine Peace Fairway naval exercise

A joint Russian-Ukrainian naval exercise called Peace Fairway is being conducted from 23-27 May.

The first such …