BRUSSELS, June 12: A breakthrough in an 18-month impasse between the European Union and Russia over Moscow's ban on meat imports from Poland is highly unlikely in talks due to begin on Wednesday, EU officials said.

Relations between the EU and Russia have been strained since the ban was enforced, prompting Poland to veto the start of talks on a new strategic partnership between Brussels and Moscow covering areas such as energy, human rights and trade.

EU food safety officials are due to discuss the dispute with their Russian counterparts during a two-day meeting in Moscow, but a lifting of the embargo or even an indication of Moscow's intention to do so in the near future is not expected.

The two sides failed to reach an agreement during a tense summit last month after EU health chief Markos Kyprianou and Russian Agriculture Minister Alexei Gordeyev had been unable to broker a deal in two days of talks in April.—Reuters