ISTANBUL, October 22. /TASS/. Normal relations between Moscow and Washington are, contrary to what the West’s current ruling elites believe, a fundamental prerequisite for Europe’s peaceful development, as only with security and predictability between Russia and the US can Europeans become an independent pole of power, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said, addressing the Verona Eurasian Economic Forum.

"Strange as it may seem, the West’s current ruling elite views the prospect of better or healthier Russia-US ties as one of the key threats to its own security," the senior diplomat noted. "Even from the standpoint of formal logic and the history of the continent’s development, normal relations between the US and the USSR, between the US and Russia are a fundamental condition for Europe’s peaceful development and, I would like to add, for its prosperity in the multipolar world."

If Europe continues to live amid geopolitical tensions between the two great powers, its political, economic, military and other weight will decrease exponentially, Grushko said. "And only under conditions of security and predictability can Europeans fulfil their potential as an independent pole of power," he noted.