For many years, the EU has been vocal about its ambition to become a powerful global actor. Finding a proper arrangement of relations with its biggest neighbour, Russia, has been the principal test of the viability of this aspiration. However, the recurrent crises Russia has triggered – especially the recent recognition of the breakaway republics […]
EU's Russia strategy: quo vadis?
The current danger of an escalation of tension in Ukraine raises many questions for the entire European continent. Among the questions the European Union will have to answer on its own is the one of its stance towards Russia.
The two authors of this debate agree very much on the need for dialogue, but differ on the sequences: while the former Hungarian MEP Gyula Hegyi warns of the threat of a Sino-Russian military alliance should the West let Russia drift away too far and argues that any partnership requires mutual understanding, respect, and dialogue, the former Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tomáš Petříček, calls for the EU to have a very precise and coherent idea of its goals in Eastern Europe before stumbling into a dialogue of which it masters neither timing nor direction.
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Looking at our globe from above the North Pole, we are shocked at how tiny our Europe is. Russia, however, our Eastern neighbour, seems to be a giant. And indeed, Russia’s territory and military capacities are gigantic by European measures. On the other hand, the population of the EU is more than three times bigger […]
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