Russia and the European Union need to build an equal and fair dialogue as partners to overcome their differences, President Vladimir Putin said in an article published in a Greek newspaper on Thursday, May 26 on an eve of a visit to the country, Reuters reports.

Putin will be in Athens on Friday, and also visit Greece's monastic community at Mount Athos in northern Greece on Saturday.

Greece, along with Cyprus, are among EU member states with close relations to Moscow. They are lukewarm toward sanctions on Russia but comply.

"Russia's starting point is the need to build an equal and fair dialogue of partners with the European Union on a wide range of issues, - from simplifying visa processes to building energy alliances," he wrote in Greece's Kathimerini newspaper.

While the EU did not appear to feel the same way, Putin said “there is no problem which cannot be solved.”

"To return to this multi-faceted relationship of partners we must reject the flawed logic that one party has the upper hand. Each side must seriously take into account the views and the concerns of the other," he wrote.

Singling out energy and transport, Putin said Moscow wanted to deepen its cooperation with Greece.

Russia has been the main gas supplier for Greece and Putin said his country has always counted on its deep ties with Athens to push ahead with its plans to boost its gas supplies Europe.