Russia Expects Sweden To Lift Ban On Spare Parts Exports For GAZ Automaker - Lavrov

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd February, 2021) Russia seeks an improvement of bilateral trade with Sweden, which includes a lift of the ban by Stockholm on exports of spare parts that are used by the Gorky automobile Plant (GAZ), Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.

Lavrov made the statement at a joint press conference with Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde, who currently also serves as the OSCE chairperson-in-office. The top diplomats held talks in Moscow earlier on Tuesday.

"Last year, the Swedish authorities for some reason prohibited the export of spare parts from the industrial press that is used at GAZ Group plants. Today we count on our Swedish colleagues to look at this situation once again from the standpoint of our economic cooperation interests," Lavrov said.

The Russian foreign minister hopes to reach a "mutually acceptable" solution to the GAZ export controversy.

Lavrov also said that Moscow expected economic assistance from Stockholm for the Swedish aluminum plant Kubal, where Russian aluminum company RUSAL is a shareholder.

"We stand for overcoming the negative trend in bilateral trade ” it seriously declined in the first eleven months of last year," the minister said.

Moscow believes that  the Russian-Swedish intergovernmental steering committee can significantly contribute to the improvement of bilateral trade, Lavrov said, adding that the committee's co-chairs intend to hold the next meeting in Stockholm this year.

Swedish company Quintus Technologies AB suspended the supply of spares for the GAZ industrial press last October, citing the 2018 US economic sanctions against the Russian car manufacturer.