BRUSSELS. Sept 24 (Interfax) - European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks in New York on Thursday to discuss further cooperation between Brussels and Moscow on international issues such as Libya and the Iranian nuclear program, the European External Action Service said in a statement.
"The discussion focused on international issues where the EU and Russia should continue to cooperate, with a view to addressing global security challenges such as the situation in Afghanistan, Libya, Mali, the Middle East Peace Process (MEPP) or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)," the statement said.
The talks, held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, also focused on EU ties with Russia, with Borrell touching on a number of issues of bilateral cooperation with the aim of securing a "more stable and predictable relationship," it said.
Disagreements remain between the two sides, especially over "Russia's violations of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity," democracy, and human rights, as well as such "hybrid threats" as activities in cyberspace and disinformation.
Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website that Afghanistan and Ukraine were among the topics discussed at the meeting, which covered a "wide range of pressing regional issues, including the situations in Afghanistan, Ukraine, and Mali, as well as around the JCPOA and the MEPP."
Lavrov and Borrell also discussed the status of and prospects for the Russia-EU relationship, the Foreign Ministry said.