Considered in the article is the problem of lack of comprehension between the European Union and Russia in questions of human rights. The problem is not just traced – it is familiarized by way of analyzing the discourse language being constructed by the two parties in the course of the debates. Comparative characterization of Europe’s “legally oriented” discourse and Russia’s “morally oriented” discourse brings the author to the conclusion that the use of different types of discourse determines different interpretation of the human rights concept, and that, in its turn, impedes finding mutual understanding in Russian-European relations.