'Russia, not the EU, has chosen confrontation,' says EEAS Secretary General

Stefano Sannino, the Secretary General of the EU's European External Action Service (EEAS), has rebuffed a claim from Russia's representative to the EU that the bloc is treating Russia as an "adversary". That comment by Vladimir Chizhov came amid claims from European lawmakers that Russia bore some responsibility for soaring gas prices across the continent. Russia's state-controlled company Gazprom supplies around one third of the EU's gas. Sannino told FRANCE 24's Talking Europe programme that the EU is "continuing engaging with Russia" – but that "the choice of confrontation is one that has been decided by Russia, not by the European Union".