Russia is ready to give more help supplying Western operations in Afghanistan but only on the basis of full respect from NATO members, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday.
Lavrov reiterated that Moscow had already given the United States a "positive answer", enabling non-military supplies to transit through Russia to Afghanistan.
"Additional steps are also possible. In April-May last year we discussed with NATO colleagues agreement on using Russian military aviation for sending supplies for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)," in Afghanistan, said Lavrov.
"Other agreements could also be possible. What's important is that relations between Russia and NATO return to a normal course," he said, referring to Western condemnation of last year's Russian military thrust into Georgia.
"Relations need to be repaired and we're ready for that but normalising them is possible only by returning to the source, to the principles" of the founding documents of the NATO-Russia Council, a consultative body, he said.
"There it's written very clearly that we participate in the Russia-NATO Council on a national basis and not on a 26-versus one basis or 26 plus one, but as 27 members, and that we respect the principles of the indivisibility of security — that the security of one cannot be secured at the expense of another," he said.
The United States has been seeking new supply routes through the former Soviet Union as it steps up operations in Afghanistan in the face of a deteriorating security situation in its other main conduit through Pakistan.
Both Russia and the United States have declared willingness to improve their ties following the election of US President Barack Obama.
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