Time.news – The Franco-German alliance to open a channel of dialogue between leaders with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has failed. The heads of state and government, after almost four hours of debate at the EU summit, rejected the proposal of the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, and of the French president, Emmanuel Macron.
“It was not possible to reach an agreement today on the possibility of organizing an EU-Russia summit soon” at the level of leaders, Merkel said at the end of the first day of the summit. “It is too early (for a summit, ed.) Because so far we have not seen a radical change in Vladimir Putin’s behavior”, confirmed the Lithuanian president, Gitanas Nauseda.
In the conclusions adopted, the invitation to “evaluate the dialogue with Russia also at the level of leaders” was removed. As compared to the drafts that circulated before the summit, the opening of the EU to collaborate with Moscow also on space and counter-terrorism was canceled.
The message that the Twenty-seven wanted to convey was very uncompromising: the European Council stresses the need for a firm and coordinated response by the EU and its member states to any further malicious, illegal and destructive activity by Russia, making full use of all the tools available to the EU and ensuring coordination with partners. To this end, the European Council also invites the Commission and the High Representative to present options for further restrictive measures, including economic sanctions “, European leaders have signed.
Even the Prime Minister, Mario Draghi, had – in his speech – proposed a similar strategy, while giving availability to the Franco-German proposal. During the dinner, Draghi drew attention to the issue of human rights, recalling some worrying developments such as the Navalny case. At the same time, he noted that Russia remains an inevitable interlocutor given its geographical location and its weight on the regional and global scene.
“The European position must remain united and firm towards Russia,” said Draghi. There is a need to cooperate where possible, but to maintain extreme openness on issues such as the violation of rights, limitations of freedoms and interference in the functioning of democratic institutions. Draghi asked not to cut all communication channels with Moscow and gave the Italian willingness to support the Franco-German proposal to review the meeting formats with Moscow.
Even before the summit it had emerged that it would not be easy to find an opening agreement with Moscow. “It is a necessary dialogue for the stability of the European continent, but a demanding dialogue because we do not give up anything in our values or in our interests. We cannot remain in a merely reactive logic towards Russia”, had invited the head of the Elysée But many at the table thought differently.
“To open an EU dialogue with Russia, Russia also needs to take certain steps. The dialogue was interrupted in 2014 with the illegal annexation of Crimea and the clashes in the Donbass, these problems must be addressed then we can talk to Russia “, clarified the Latvian prime minister, Krisjanis Karins, upon his arrival at the summit. “The Kremlin understands the politics of force and does not understand free concessions as a sign of force”, added Karins, who said he was “very worried” by the proposal. “I do not mind if the EU presidents meet Putin but personally I will not attend a meeting with him”, underlined the Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte.
A cautious opening had filtered out of Moscow. “We perceive this initiative positively. President Putin is in favor of creating a mechanism for dialogue and contacts between Brussels and Moscow”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. But the head of Moscow diplomacy, Serghei Lavrov, had already set the first stakes. “We are not aware of any other details. What would the topic be? What would be the agenda of the summit?” He explained. “We don’t even know if the other EU member states agree”. In fact they weren’t. (Time.news
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