Tunisian Foreign Minister Says Country Ready to Supply More Commodities to Russia

MOSCOW, September 2 (RIA Novosti) - Tunisia is ready to supply a range of goods, including olive oil, to Russia, the country’s Foreign Minister Monji Hamdi said Tuesday during talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.

“We are also ready to supply to Russia a range of goods, which Russia currently does not receive from the European Union,” Hamdi said.

Tunisia’s foreign minister noted that this primarily concerns olive oil. The minister then claimed olive oil produced in European countries is of “low quality.”

“But we are ready to supply other goods, as well,” Hamdi noted, stressing that Russian-Tunisian trade is below the countries’ expectations and expressed hoped that it would increase.

In response to Western economic sanctions imposed on Russia due to its stance over the Ukrainian crisis, Moscow introduced restrictions on the import of certain food and agricultural products from the European Union, the United States, Canada, Australia and Norway. The products include meat, fish, dairy products, fruits, vegetables, oils and other commodities.