On Friday, January 21, the Russian Defense Ministry released fragments of a letter that the head of the Russian military department, Army General Sergei Shoigu, wrote in response to an invitation from British colleague Ben Wallace to visit London.
"The resumption of contacts in the spirit of goodwill between Russia and the UK will help reduce tensions in Europe," Shoigu said. He reminded Wallace that the possibility of constructive dialogue was demonstrated by the parties during the visit of the Russian delegation to London in 2013, where the defense and Foreign Ministers of the Russian Federation and the UK held talks in the "2+2" format.
In a letter to his colleague, Shoigu confirmed his readiness to discuss all relevant security issues. And also, based on the principles of reciprocity, he offered to hold talks in Moscow at any time convenient for the British Minister of Defense.
Recall that Ben Wallace announced last Monday that he had invited Sergei Shoigu to come to the UK capital to discuss common security interests. "Today I am sending an invitation to my Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu to visit London in the next few weeks. We are ready to discuss issues that concern common security concerns, and to engage constructively in good faith," Wallace said in the House of Commons of the British Parliament.
The Minister said that the UK respects the people and culture of Russia and seeks to establish mutually beneficial relations with the Russian Federation. "We would like to be friends with the Russian people, as we have been for hundreds of years. There is a world in which we can establish mutually beneficial relations with Russia by working together in areas of common interests and solving common security problems," Wallace stressed.
At the same time, he did not do without the accusations typical of Western politicians against Moscow. Thus, according to the minister, Russia's behavior is becoming "increasingly threatening." Therefore, the UK will help Ukraine to increase its defensive potential. It was stated that Kiev will be supplied with light anti-tank weapons. And the British will also present a training program for the Ukrainian military in a short time.
Yuri Gavrilov