Implementation of the agreements that were reached during the Swiss president’s 2003 visit were in the focus of the Russo-Swiss negotiations.

Lavrov said he knew the Swiss minister since the time they had worked at the United Nations HQ in New York. For his part, Calmy-Ray noted that “the relations with Moscow are important for Berne”.

Russia and Switzerland are interested in cooperation in a law enforcement sphere, Lavrov said after the talks.

“We have a common understanding of methods of the struggle against the laundering of money gotten in a criminal way and the struggle against the financing of terrorism. We are interested in it,” Lavrov said.

He called productive the talks with Calmy-Ray and expressed hope that Russian-Swiss relations “will continue to develop in an ascending way”.

Two agreements on cooperation in a programme of destruction of Russia’s chemical weapons were signed on the results of the talks.

One is on the funding of equipment reconstruction at a facility for chemical weapons disposal in Kambarka, Udmurtia, and the other on setting up a system of medical control at a similar plant in Shchuchye in the Kurgan region.