After two days of talks, EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou and Russian Agriculture Minister Alexei Gordeyev failed to broker a deal on Sunday that would see Moscow to lift its embargo on Polish meat and plant products.
"We continued the talks today (Sunday) and we have identified issues we need to have an agreement on, we didn't reach that agreement this time," Kyprianou told reporters after an inconclusive 90-minute session with the Russian delegation at a luxury hotel.
"But we have agreed to continue the discussion, our experts will continue working on these issues, and we will both be personally involved following these discussion, and if there is a need we will meet at our level again," he added.
Nevertheless, neither official gave a timeline for when any expected agreement could be reached on the Polish meat ban that has rumbled on for 18 months.
The row has taken on wider proportions since Warsaw vetoed the opening of talks between the European Union and Russia on the new partnership agreement in retaliation over the embargo.
The EU commissioner tried to remain upbeat that the talks failed to bring a breakthrough, saying both sides had a different approach in how to proceed. "The position of the European Union is that, based on the progress done. we could have some immediate results today." "Whenever we don't manage to finally resolve a problem we wish we had, but what is important is that we both have a willingness to find a solution and we are going to build on this willingness."
Gordeyev suggested that more needed to be done before Russia would lift its ban on Polish food.
"Our European counterparts expected more from these negotiations, but our prime interest is to restore order in the meat market, in particular respect to Polish products," said Gordeyev. He said Russia had put forward a draft joint plan of action on the "outstanding issues".
"Our first task, the way we see it, is to make sure that the meat market is free of fraud," he said, adding that he had agreed to press on with negotiations in the "near future".
The negative outcome of the informal discussions in Limassol is expected to have an impact on talks in Luxembourg on Monday between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and EU officials on the sidelines of an EU foreign ministers' meeting. In Brussels, EU officials had voiced optimism that Russia could be persuaded to lift its embargo on Polish farm products so that talks could begin on a new partnership agreement with Moscow.
Last Tuesday the European Commission sent the latest in a string of letters to Moscow seeking to clear up lingering concerns over the safety of Polish meat and other foodstuffs.