The Russia-EU summit has ended with an announcement that the two sides will hold the first round of talks on new strategic relations in Brussels next week. European security was also high on the agenda at Friday's meeting. Leaders from Russia and the EU are seeking a new agreement to replace the current Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. The international obligations binding Russia and the EU will form the cornerstone of the new legislation. It will also contain corresponding clauses to ensure effective cooperation between the two sides. Dmitry Medvedev, Russian President, said, "We discussed certain problems and thorny issues in our relationship. From our point of view, the use of European solidarity to promote the interests of separate members has become a very alarming tendency." Medvedev also reiterated his idea of holding a summit to prepare a European security agreement. This is seen as an effort to reduce the EU's security dependence on the United States. Medvedev said none of the current European organizations, including the OSCE, the EU or NATO, is capable of solving the problem. And he said it was important European security did not fall apart into blocs. With energy security also high on the agenda, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said Russia and the EU are interdependent in the current climate of high energy prices.

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