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Berlusconi calls for stronger EU, could include Russia.
AFP via EUbusiness ^ | Jan 19, 2002 |
Berlusconi calls for stronger EU, could include Russia
MADRID, Jan 19 (AFP) - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi Saturday called in a newspaper interview for a stronger and larger European Union which could ultimately include Russia.
"I am enthusiastic to build a strong and large Europe, not only with 25 or 27 members, but also one which will include the Russian Federation, whenever that becomes possible," Berlusconi told the Spanish paper ABC.
Despite recent statements which have placed the Italian leader among the continent's leading eurosceptics, Berlusconi described himself as "one of the most fervent supporters of (EU) enlargment (so much so) that I love to call for the reunification of Europe".
The interview follows a speech Berlusconi gave to the Italian parliament Monday where he criticised the Franco-German partnership which has long been regarded as the powerhouse of European policy.
"Nobody, I repeat nobody, can think they can put us under their control or worse still treat us as a subject with limited sovereignty," he had told the chamber.
He also sacked his pro-Europe foreign minister Renato Ruggiero just days after the introduction of the single European currency, assuming the portfolio for himself for at least six months.
In a strongly pro-European interview, Berlusconi called for a Europe which would exert its political muscle on the international stage.
The EU should be "capable of pursuing an individual foreign policy towards the rest of the world" as well as "having the ability to intervene militarily in regional crises", the prime minister pointed out.
But he said that this political power depended on a strong financial foundation which required the implementation of economic policies which supported the private sector.
"Certain European socialist leaders talk non-stop, but they keep an excessive state presence in the economy as well as high taxation levels. I want what (Spanish PM Jose Maria) Aznar and (British PM Tony) Blair want. To innovate and to get rid of the monopolies and the bureaucracies," Berlusconi said.
An overwhelming majority of Russians say they would like to see their country one day join the European Union, a trend that has increased sharply over the past month, according to an opinion poll published yesterday.
Seventy-three per cent of those questioned by the Public Opinion Foundation said they would like to see Russia as an EU member, with 10 per cent expressing the contrary view, the Interfax news agency reported the poll as saying.
In May, the corresponding figures were 52 per cent and 18 per cent, the poll showed.
The most significant international event likely to have influenced public opinion in the period between the two polls was the visit of more than 40 heads of state and government, including most European leaders, to St Petersburg to celebrate the tercentenary of the city's founding.
The poll indicated that 55 per cent of Russians believe most European leaders view their country favourably, with 24 per cent disagreeing.
A majority of respondents believed that the current environment is favourable to a Russian rapprochement with Europe.
Fifty per cent of respondents said that Russia should develop an equal partnership with both the European Union and the United States, while one third (31 per cent) said that priority should be given to developing relations with the European Union.
Only 2 per cent said that Russia should primarily focus on expanding its co-operation with the United States, the poll showed.
The two leaders are due to discuss closer Russia-EU ties.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is flying from Moscow to spend the weekend at Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's luxurious Sardinian retreat.
The Italian media magnate is laying on two evenings of musical entertainment for the former KGB agent at his seaside villa on the island's Emerald coast.
In return, the Russian president is expected to invite Mr Berlusconi to a reception on board the flagship cruiser of Russia's Black Sea fleet, lying at anchor in a nearby bay.
The two leaders are due to hold informal discussions on possible ways of associating Russia more closely with the European Union - something that not all EU members look favourably on.
Friendlier atmosphere.
This summer Mr Berlusconi, currently president of the EU, is using his sumptuous villa - overlooking the crystal clear waters of one of the Mediterranean's most beautiful bays - as the setting for a new style of informal international diplomacy.
He has created an exotic new cactus garden in the grounds of his La Certosa villa to show off to his Russian guest and has invited the Italian tenor, Andrea Bocelli, to sing at an evening party.
The billionaire Italian leader prides himself on being on intimate terms with many world leaders. Last year he invited President Putin's two teenage daughters to stay at his villa.
By inviting the Russian president into one of his many luxury homes, Mr Berlusconi feels he can create a friendlier and more intimate atmosphere than at any official government guesthouse.
Next week the prime ministers of France and Spain will receive the same VIP treatment.
Meanwhile, three Russian warships have arrived at the secluded harbour of La Maddalena, not far from Mr Berlusconi's villa, which has been used by the Americans for over four decades to service their nuclear submarine fleet.
An American naval supply vessel usually at anchor there has tactfully withdrawn while three warships from Russia's Black Sea fleet pay the highest profile Russian naval visit to Italy for more than half-a-century.
Berlusconi's villa is on the beautiful Emerald coast.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is preparing a reception fit for a tsar when the Russian president visits Italy this week.
Vladimir Putin, who is going to Mr Berlusconi's Sardinian villa of La Certosa on Friday, will be confronted by - among other things - hundreds of exotic cacti, a wild boar reserve and an evening of Italian love songs.
The visit is part of a summer initiative described by Mr Berlusconi as "friendship diplomacy", which has also seen meetings recently with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas.
Last year, Mr Berlusconi hosted Mr Putin's two teenage daughters at the sumptuous villa, on the island's Emerald coast.
There are unconfirmed reports that Katya and Masha, as well as Mr Putin's wife Lyudmila, will accompany him on this occasion.
Love songs.
Mr Berlusconi, a keen gardener, has recently built a garden in the shape of a Roman amphitheatre made out of 400 cacti ordered from the world's best garden centres.
Other features of the villa's grounds include a 500-year-old carob tree and an artificial lake widened specially for Mr Putin's visit.
The Russian leader can also expect a series of evening concerts of Neapolitan love songs and operatic favourites, which may also feature Mr Berlusconi's own compositions.
Mr Berlusconi, who began his working life as a cruise ship crooner, is expected to present singer and guitarist Mariano Apicella, with whom he has already recorded a CD.
The two men are said to be working on a new song entitled "And I always think of you".
The popular tenor Andrea Bocelli may also perform.
"I want an unforgettable evening: silver seas, soft lights hidden among the ancient olive leaves, the fragrance of the garden," Mr Berlusconi was quoted as saying by Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Mr Putin appears to have a sense of the grandeur of the occasion, and plans to arrive with three Russian warships, including a missile cruiser.
Russian newspaper reports say the two leaders will hold a press conference on one of the ships, anchored by the island of La Maddalena, near Sardinia's north-eastern coast.
He is no stranger to the idea of arranging extravagant receptions, spending more than $1bn to renovate St Petersburg in time for the arrival of foreign guests for the city's 300th anniversary last May.
The 186-meter Moskva anchored off the coast of Sardina. Putin is to attend a reception and news conference on the cruiser. Antonio Satta / AP
President Vladimir Putin will kick back this weekend at Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's luxury villa on Sardinia, where he will go sailing, be serenaded by tenor Andrea Bocelli and get a chance to check out 400 cactuses planted especially for his visit.
Putin, his wife, Lyudmila, and their two teenage daughters arrive Friday for a three-day stay at the 2,500-square-meter La Certosa residence on the island's northern Costa Smeralda, or Emerald Coast, famous for its crystal-clear waters, white sand beaches and pink granite rocks.
Berlusconi, a lover of what the Italian press refers to as "entertaining diplomacy," has special treats in store for his "caro amico Vladimiro," or "dear friend Vladimir" -- the informal way Berlusconi addresses Putin.
Life has been very busy in recent weeks at La Certosa, which is on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea and surrounded by 50 hectares of park. Workers have enlarged the park's artificial lake and planted a 500-year-old carob tree near its shores. Berlusconi, who has a passion for gardening, bought the tree at the botanic gardens in Cagliari, the Sardinian capital.
Gardeners also have planted 400 cactuses that Berlusconi ordered from the Canary island of Lanzarote. The cactuses form a natural amphitheater that Putin will be able to admire from an enormous gazebo at weekend concerts.
For the concerts, Berlusconi has invited the platinum-selling Bocelli, who sings arias and Neapolitan folk songs. And, according to Italian media reports, Berlusconi is planning to sing a duet with Bocelli.
Neapolitan folk singer Mariano Apicella, who the press calls Berlusconi's private minstrel, has been invited as well.
Apicella, 39, became a star a few years ago when Berlusconi heard one of his performances in an Neapolitan restaurant and invited him to sing at one of his villas. Since then, Berlusconi and Apicella have been inseparable. The prime minister loves to compose songs for Apicella to sing, and the two often sing together.
"[Apicella] will sing Berlusconi's songs especially to the Russian president," said Giampiero Cocco, a reporter with the La Nuova Sardegna newspaper.
Berlusconi, who is trying to lose 350 grams a day on a diet, goes jogging and, according to Italian media reports, is planning to invite Putin to go jogging with him in the morning.
"If Putin does not like to jog, he will be given the chance to go horseback riding," said Augusto Ditel, a La Nuova Sardegna reporter who has been covering Berlusconi's guests for years.
Ditel said Berlusconi has a stable of horses.
Berlusconi, who has said he wants to make his villa a kind of U.S. Camp David presidential retreat, receives foreign dignitaries and holds news conferences there.
Sardinia Island also is a popular vacation spot for wealthy tourists, and a number of Russians have been spending their summer vacations there in recent years.
"Putin won't be the only Russian on Costa Smeralda. More and more Russians are coming to this area," said Vito Fiori, a reporter for the Unione Sarda newspaper.
"Russian is one of the main languages spoken here these days," he added.
This is Putin's first visit to the island, but his daughters Masha, 18, and Katya, 17, stayed there as Berlusconi's guests last summer. Berlusconi's daughter Barbara, 18, is studying Russian, according to Italian media reports.
Security is high for the visit -- and the Italians are getting a kick out of the fact that Russian navy ships that are part of Putin's security detail are anchored several hundred meters from a U.S. naval base.
Three ships from the Black Sea Fleet anchored off the Sardinian coast on Wednesday, and two of them are near the Santo Stefano base, which is visited by U.S. nuclear submarines for routine maintenance checks and supplies.
The Moskva cruiser and its escort ship, the Smetlivy, are about two kilometers from the Maddalena Archipelago, off Sardinia's northern coast, an Italian navy spokesman told the Italian press. The third vessel, the Ivan Bubnov tanker, is staying in international waters.
"This is the first time that we have seen Russian navy ships so close to an American base," said Cocco, whose newspaper, La Nuova Sardegna, ran a story Thursday with the headline "The Russians Are Close to the Americans."
Unione Sarda announced the ships with the headline "Tsar Putin's Vessels Have Arrived."
"People here understand that this is an important event," Cocco said. "We are seeing Russian vessels near an American base for the first time. You have lines of cars trying to catch the scene from different panoramic spots."
Italian press reported that Putin and Berlusconi will hold a joint news conference on board the 186-meter Moskva. The Black Sea Fleet's commander said a reception also will be held aboard the cruiser, Interfax reported.
It was unclear which day the events on the ship would be held. Berlusconi's office and the Kremlin are refusing to comment about the visit.
An official from the Olbia airport, located 30 kilometers from Berlusconi's villa, said two Tupolev jets with "a lot of KGB guys on board" landed Wednesday. The official, who asked not to be identified, said four armored cars were unloaded from the planes.
Italy has beefed up security on the island with scores of officers from the police, the military police, the finance police and the secret services.
"For the Italians, security also is not a joke," Cocco said.
On Saturday, Berlusconi and Putin are to board the 25-meter Yacht Argo, owned by the Italian navy, and sail along the northern Sardinian coast.
Putin will not spend the whole weekend relaxing. He and Berlusconi plan to hold informal talks about Russian-EU ties and international problems.
The visit is the first of two Putin plans to make to Italy while Berlusconi holds the rotating EU presidency, which he took over in July for six months.
Putin will visit again in November to hold bilateral talks and take part in a Russia-EU summit. Russia wants the summit to focus on visa-free travel between Russia and the EU and its bid to join the World Trade Organization.
Berlusconi visited Russia in February and July this year.
President Vladimir Putin speaking as Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi smiles during a news conference Friday at a hotel near the prime minister's residence in Porto Rotondo on the Costa Smeralda in Sardinia. Reuters
LA MADDALENA, Sardinia -- Hours after a deadly nuclear submarine accident in the Barents Sea on Saturday, President Vladimir Putin and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi toured one of the Russian navy's flagships anchored off Sardinia during their three-day meeting on the Mediterranean island.
Putin and Berlusconi toured the missile cruiser Moskva, the 186-meter flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, meeting with the commander and crew of the warship, which is anchored near La Maddalena naval base on a tiny island off Sardinia's northeast coast.
The tour had been scheduled before word came from the Russian Defense Ministry that a nuclear-powered K-159 submarine sank in a gale.
At a news conference back on shore, Berlusconi said Putin had been at his side when he learned of the disaster. He offered condolences on behalf of Italy and its people.
In a demonstration flight for the two leaders during their tour of the Moskva, a bulky gray-bottomed Russian firefighting plane screamed over the sea and dropped clouds of flame retardant. Putin told the news conference the Be-200 craft "has no equal," and Berlusconi said Italian civil defense authorities would consider using it.
Putin insisted the warship's presence was not intended as a show of force or a security measure, saying its visit to the area happened to coincide with his own. "I did not bring the Moskva here. Thank God, our cruisers can still go on their own, our planes and missiles can fly," he said.
The Moskva was in the Indian Ocean this spring for joint exercises with India that marked Russia's biggest naval deployment since the Soviet breakup. Originally called the Slava, the cruiser was launched in 1979 and was the planned site of talks during a 1989 summit off Malta between Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and U.S. President George Bush, although that meeting was moved to another ship because of bad weather. It underwent repairs from 1990 to 1999.
Putin said the ship's presence during his visit was a sign that "the level of trust between Russia and the NATO countries is rising. "I think this is very important ... and we will continue further on this path," Putin told a joint news conference at the La Maddalena naval base.
Berlusconi agreed, noting that La Maddalena also is the site of a U.S. naval base. But he also said that military cooperation with Russia can give Europe more influence in the world and the might to act as a counterbalance to the United States.
President Vladimir Putin catching Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi when he tripped during their news conference in Porto Rotundo, Italy, on Friday. Reuters
Berlusconi was on hand when Putin's plane touched down Friday afternoon, and he briefly saluted the Russian leader as he emerged. The two shook hands and hugged on the tarmac before boarding a helicopter bound for Berlusconi's villa on Sardinia's posh Costa Smeralda.
Speaking after a three-hour meeting at the villa, Berlusconi offered strong support for Putin in his desire for closer ties with Europe and called for the eventual removal of all visa requirements between Russia and the EU. As a start, Putin and Berlusconi said they were working on making travel between their countries easier, focusing at first on such groups as students, scientists and businessmen.
With his sleeves rolled up and his collar open in the Mediterranean heat, Berlusconi also gushed with praise for Putin, saying his leadership is turning Russia into a democratic and economically advanced Western nation.
"After the last century witnessed the confrontations between the West and the East, today the East is declaring its desire to be part of the West, part of Europe," Berlusconi said at a news conference. "And this is also thanks to President Putin."
During a playful moment at the news conference, Berlusconi leaned his elbow against Putin's lectern and made a show of listening intently to his answers.
Putin's two teenage daughters spent some time at Berlusconi's Sardinian villa last summer, but Putin stepped off the presidential Il-96 jet alone Friday, despite Russian and Italian media reports that his wife and daughters would accompany him. A Kremlin official said they remained in Moscow.
Putin wound up his visit Sunday with private activities at Berlusconi's villa.
President Vladimir Putin and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on board the Russian cruiser Moskva off Sardinia on Saturday. Max Solinas / AP
LA MADDALENA, Sardinia -- Hours after a deadly nuclear submarine accident in the Barents Sea on Saturday, President Vladimir Putin and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi toured one of the Russian navy's flagships anchored off Sardinia during their three-day meeting on the Mediterranean island.
Putin and Berlusconi toured the missile cruiser Moskva, the 186-meter flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, meeting with the commander and crew of the warship, which is anchored near La Maddalena naval base on a tiny island off Sardinia's northeast coast.
The tour had been scheduled before word came from the Russian Defense Ministry that a nuclear-powered K-159 submarine sank in a gale.
At a news conference back on shore, Berlusconi said Putin had been at his side when he learned of the disaster. He offered condolences on behalf of Italy and its people.
In a demonstration flight for the two leaders during their tour of the Moskva, a bulky gray-bottomed Russian firefighting plane screamed over the sea and dropped clouds of flame retardant. Putin told the news conference the Be-200 craft "has no equal," and Berlusconi said Italian civil defense authorities would consider using it.
Putin insisted the warship's presence was not intended as a show of force or a security measure, saying its visit to the area happened to coincide with his own. "I did not bring the Moskva here. Thank God, our cruisers can still go on their own, our planes and missiles can fly," he said.
The Moskva was in the Indian Ocean this spring for joint exercises with India that marked Russia's biggest naval deployment since the Soviet breakup. Originally called the Slava, the cruiser was launched in 1979 and was the planned site of talks during a 1989 summit off Malta between Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and U.S. President George Bush, although that meeting was moved to another ship because of bad weather. It underwent repairs from 1990 to 1999.
Putin said the ship's presence during his visit was a sign that "the level of trust between Russia and the NATO countries is rising. "I think this is very important ... and we will continue further on this path," Putin told a joint news conference at the La Maddalena naval base.
Berlusconi agreed, noting that La Maddalena also is the site of a U.S. naval base. But he also said that military cooperation with Russia can give Europe more influence in the world and the might to act as a counterbalance to the United States.
Berlusconi was on hand when Putin's plane touched down Friday afternoon, and he briefly saluted the Russian leader as he emerged. The two shook hands and hugged on the tarmac before boarding a helicopter bound for Berlusconi's villa on Sardinia's posh Costa Smeralda.
Speaking after a three-hour meeting at the villa, Berlusconi offered strong support for Putin in his desire for closer ties with Europe and called for the eventual removal of all visa requirements between Russia and the EU. As a start, Putin and Berlusconi said they were working on making travel between their countries easier, focusing at first on such groups as students, scientists and businessmen.
With his sleeves rolled up and his collar open in the Mediterranean heat, Berlusconi also gushed with praise for Putin, saying his leadership is turning Russia into a democratic and economically advanced Western nation.
"After the last century witnessed the confrontations between the West and the East, today the East is declaring its desire to be part of the West, part of Europe," Berlusconi said at a news conference. "And this is also thanks to President Putin."
During a playful moment at the news conference, Berlusconi leaned his elbow against Putin's lectern and made a show of listening intently to his answers.
Putin's two teenage daughters spent some time at Berlusconi's Sardinian villa last summer, but Putin stepped off the presidential Il-96 jet alone Friday, despite Russian and Italian media reports that his wife and daughters would accompany him. A Kremlin official said they remained in Moscow.
Putin wound up his visit Sunday with private activities at Berlusconi's villa.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister: Visa free regime for EU and Russia.
Both Russia and the European Union are interested in visa free trips, said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Razov in the interview which he gave to the Profil magazine.
"After all, a visa free regime is a mutual need," believes the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister.
"If we, the European Union the Russia, set to ourselves the task of building a united, democratic and safe Europe, a Europe without artificial barriers and diving lines, we must orient ourselves on the common space in the economic, cultural and educational spheres, in the spheres of security, justice and so on," said Sergei Razov.
"Unfortunately, things are moving slowly. The European commission take into consideration the opinions of all member-countries of the European Union, but they are not always the same. The European bureaucracy also plays its role," pointed out Sergei Razov.
However, consultations on this score are going on with a number of EU member-countries and candidates.
"The recent agreements of our President and the Prime Minister of Italy, the country which now holds a rotating presidency in the European Union, are promising in this sphere," noted the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister.
At the present time different variants of the possible agreement are being worked out, said Razov.
"There is a possibility, for example, for visa free trips with diplomatic and business passports. And there are different types of visa regimes - visas may be free of charge, long-term and multiple," added the high ranking Russian diplomat. According to him, a simplified procedure of receiving visas can also be established for certain categories of persons - businessmen, schoolchildren, students, participants in scientific and cultural exchanges.
Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Vladimir CHIZHOV
RIAN
11/03/2003 18:20
The establishment of a common European space is a key aspect of Russia-European Union co-operation.
What does this term mean? It would be easier to answer this question after describing joint Russia-EU work in four areas.
The economic aspect of our cooperation has been the most successful. After two years of work on it, the common economic space concept will be finalised prior to the November 6 Russia-EU summit in Rome. After that, the concerned parties will start discussing its implementation. The fourth general energy-dialogue report should also be ready for the Rome summit. It goes without saying that energy is the most obvious base for reliable, long-term Russia-EU relations.
Moreover, we are continuing to negotiate other aspects of our relations, co-ordinating specific interaction issues in the context of the European security and defence policy concept, which refers to crisis management and civil defence spheres, as well as operations to deal with the aftermath of disasters.
A Russia-Europol cooperation agreement is due to be signed at the Rome summit. This document concerns common European-wide freedom space, though everyone is equally aware that freedom is impossible without the primacy of law.
The creation of a common culture, education and science space is seen as the fourth area of our cooperation. We are preparing to prolong the science-and-technological cooperation agreement in this field. Moreover, Russia recently joined the Bologna process, which stipulates common education standards. Some EU countries recognise a number of Russian college and university diplomas and degrees. We would like to sign a similar agreement dealing with school-leavers' certificates being issued to students when they finish secondary school.
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov held talks with Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, Ireland's Foreign Minister Brian Cowen, EU Commission member Gunther Verheugen and the EU's High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) Javier Solana in Moscow on the threshold of the Rome summit. The concerned parties discussed last-moment summit preparations.
The Rome summit is called on to implement the relevant decision of the May 31, 2003 Russia-EU summit in St. Petersburg on establishing a permanent partnership council.
The Rome summit will also continue to discuss visa-free travel for Russian and EU citizens, which is a very important issue.
What do we want to accomplish? Russia would like to see its citizens included in the EU's so-called Group A regime when they cross EU borders. According to our information, this list comprises 43 countries, whose citizens require no visas for entering the EU and for staying there (without employment rights) for a period of up to three months. Naturally, reciprocal accords are envisaged.
We are talking about the visa-free regime as a prospect for the future, suggesting that this goal be attained stage by stage. The Schengen system uses a simplified visa procedure for those involved in culture, sports and student exchanges, as well as for senior citizens visiting their relatives, etc. We would like to take advantage of these available opportunities in line with a bilateral accord, while also discussing prospects for issuing additional multiple entry-exit visas and introducing a more lenient visa system for the population of border areas.
Initial talks on elaborating a mutually acceptable border-crossing system were held in Brussels early this October. And we hope that such talks will continue.
It should also be noted that the Russia-EU summit in Rome is the last such representative conference on the eve of the EU's projected enlargement in May 2004. Moscow believes that everything possible should be done to prevent such expansion from negatively affecting the state of trade-and-economic, political and humanitarian cooperation with the 10 new EU members, which are all seen as Russia's traditional partners without exception. These 10 candidate countries account for 15% of Russia's entire trade turnover.
The EU enlargement covers the trade and economic, legal and political spheres.
The partnership and cooperation agreement, which was signed in June 1994, and which entered into force December 1, 1997, is the legal foundation of current Russia-EU relations. Specific protocols have to be signed and ratified to apply this agreement to new EU countries. The details of this procedure are yet to be co-ordinated.
Moreover, discrimination against Russian-speaking communities in Latvia and Estonia will turn into a problem for Russia-EU relations, rather than bilateral discussions between Russia and these two countries, after the EU expands.
Kaliningrad region problems, i.e. energy-supplies, fishing and transit issues, still remain to be solved completely in connection with the EU's forthcoming enlargement. The 2002 Brussels summit reached a passenger-transit accord, which has been implemented successfully since July 1, 2003. Meanwhile, the sides are continuing to negotiate freight-transit and military-transit aspects.
Various problems facing Russian exporters after the EU's expansion are a separate matter for talks.
This concerns the future of EU tariffs and non-tariff restrictions with regard to Russian goods. For example, the EU allots Russian steel-import quotas to 15 countries. Meanwhile we would like such quotas to encompass all the 25 countries, because this is only a logical step. The same can be said about automatic or non-automatic spreading of anti-dumping proceedings (as regards Russian goods) to new EU members.
We hope that the Rome summit will make it possible to constructively solve problems in Russia-EU relations, also becoming an important step in forging a common European space.
European Union leaders have distanced themselves from remarks by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi defending Russia's actions in Chechnya. Speaking after an EU-Russian summit in Rome, Mr Berlusconi blamed European media for distorting the truth. His comments broke with the EU's policy of making human rights a condition of developing its relations with Russia. EU Commission President Romano Prodi said he hoped Mr Berlusconi was better informed about Italy than Russia.
'Media distortions'
Mr Berlusconi leapt to Vladimir Putin's defence when a French reporter asked Mr Putin about the rule of law in Russia. "I'm acting as President Putin's defence lawyer here, even though he hasn't asked me to," Mr Berlusconi said at a joint news conference. "In Chechnya, there has been terrorist activity that has produced many attacks against Russian citizens and there has never been an equivalent response from the Russian Federation," he said. "The truth is that there are often distortions in the press, in Italy as abroad. It's the same thing as far as Chechnya and the Yukos story is concerned," he said, referring to the arrest of the head of Russia's Yukos oil giant, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, on fraud charges. Mr Berlusconi, a media mogul who himself is on trial for corruption, has blamed unfair press coverage and politically motivated prosecutors for the charges against him.
Disappointment.
Mr Putin reacted delightedly to Mr Berlusconi's impromptu defence, saying Mr Berlusconi was just doing his job. But EU leaders expressed disappointment over the remarks. "It's clear that our information makes us, as always, concerned [over Chechnya]," said EU Commission President Romano Prodi, a main political rival of Mr Berlusconi's. EU external affairs commissioner, Chris Patten, said neither he, nor others in Europe, would agree with Mr Berlusconi. The BBC's European affairs correspondent William Horsley, said European human rights groups will be dismayed by the lack of firmness in the EU's stance on Russia.
Mr Prodi said after the discussions with Mr Putin that he had been reassured the rule of law was being applied fairly. Mr Putin said Russia would stage a "consistent and tough" crackdown on all illegal activities in Russia regardless of who the perpetrators might be. "Our aim is not to go after specific individuals but to establish order in our country," he said. He said oligarchs who grew rich through privatisations spent "hundreds of millions of dollars" to defend their position, to pay the best lawyers and incite the media to attack the government over the affair. "Attempts to blackmail the state authorities will fail," he said.
Authoritarian concerns.
The detention of the head of Mr Khodorkovsky on fraud charges two weeks ago has raised international concern about Mr Putin's authoritarian tendencies. Critics have suggested Mr Khodorkovsky's interest in politics made him an unwelcome rival to Mr Putin as parliamentary and presidential elections approach. The White House has said the affair raised "some serious concerns about the state of rule of law and the business and investment climate in Russia". On Friday, the issues of Chechnya and Yukos will be raised again as President Putin visits Paris for talks with President Jacques Chirac. When Mr Putin became president in the year 2000, Mr Chirac refused to meet him, speaking of his outrage over Russia's crushing of dissent in Chechnya.
EU Upset With Italy Over Russia (Socialists hate Conservatives).
The Associated Press | Monday, Nov. 17, 2003
Posted on 11/16/2003 10:59 PM PST by RussianConservative
BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Relations between Italy and its EU partners have soured over Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's handling as EU president of a meeting last week in Rome with President Vladimir Putin, officials said Friday.
One diplomat, who asked not to be named, said "an overwhelming majority" of the 15 EU nations and the 10 countries joining the union in May are angry that Berlusconi was "soft" on human rights violations in Russia.
The issue will be raised at a meeting of EU foreign ministers Monday, "a truly rare and unprecedented procedure," the diplomat said.
Moscow's crackdown on rebels in Chechnya and the arrest of oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky were not mentioned in a post EU-Russia summit statement. But at a news conference later, Berlusconi vigorously defended Putin. "I know President Putin well enough to guarantee that he is very clear about the separation between the judicial power and the executive power," he said.
Officials said most EU governments feel if Berlusconi could not get Chechnya into a summit statement, he should not have defended Putin's rights record afterward.
RosBusinessConsulting. Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2003, 3:58 PM Moscow Time
Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed that the European Union's "tough" demands concerning energy issues at the negotiations of Russia's accession to the WTO were acceptable for Russia. He made a corresponding statement at a meeting with Russian and EU industrialists in the Kremlin today, Rossiya (Russia) television reported. At the same time, Putin admitted that Russia did not have considerable "disagreements with the EU concerning the introduction of free market principles in the Russian fuel and energy sector. These disagreements are about the pace of concrete reforms," the president added. According to Putin, Russian state authorities desire to create a zone of free trade with the EU amid deep cooperation in the energy, transport, science, ecology and telecommunication sectors. At the same time, Putin expressed concerns that the upcoming enlargement of the European Union might negatively affect Russia's economic interests in Europe.
Russia fears that its steel industry will suffer especially after longtime Eastern European customers adopt EU trade regulations. Itar-Tass
Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov warned Monday of a "legal vacuum" that could arise once 10 new member states join the European Union this spring.
Ivanov's comments in Minsk were the latest in a series of Russian demands that Brussels respond to political and economic concerns precipitated by EU expansion.
Russian relations with the EU are already strained because of Moscow's reluctance to ratify the Kyoto Protocol on global warming and the EU's de facto veto over Russia's membership in the World Trade Organization.
Ivanov's remarks came on the heels of a closed-door meeting in Moscow between Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Chizhov and ambassadors of the 25 current and future EU countries, as well as the EU's top diplomat on Friday.
Chizhov handed over a list of 14 concerns, ranging from steel duties to the status of ethnic Russians in Latvia and Estonia.
On Monday, Konstantin Kosachyov, head of the State Duma's international affairs committee, said in an interview with Interfax that EU enlargement could cost Russia 150 million euros ($186 million) per year.
At the same time Ivanov cautioned that as bilateral agreements between Russia and new EU members become null and void upon expansion, a legal vacuum could arise without proper planning.
The EU has gone to great lengths to sell its expansion as beneficial to Moscow, saying it would bring a huge market up to Russia's borders and simplify the negotiation of trade provisions.
Kosachyov estimated that Russia will soon conduct 54 percent of its trade with the expanded EU.
But the 14 demands indicate that Moscow is still not convinced.
Russia opposes the automatic extension to incoming members of its 1997 Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with the EU.
The extension of the agreement would force Russian agricultural exports to East and Central European countries to conform with the EU's tougher hygiene standards; place higher import tariffs on most goods; and complicate market access for the country's steel and food producers.
For example, a related agreement signed in 2002 allows Russia to sell 1.3 million tons of steel roll to the EU this year. But Russia annually exports 500,000 tons of steel roll to Eastern Europe. The EU has indicated it would consider raising the steel quota, although a final decision is still pending.
"The Russian side has repeatedly noted, including at the highest level, that the issue [of extending the PCA] is not a technical procedure that could be implemented automatically," the Foreign Ministry said last week.
The EU insists some issues, especially relating to political settlements and health and safety, must not be tied to the PCA or overall economic negotiations.
"We cannot review sanitary standards to a lower level just because we are going to enlarge," Arancha Gonzalez, spokeswoman for EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy, said Monday.
Ireland, which holds the EU presidency, has said that extending the PCA to accession states by May 1 was one of its top priorities in relations with Russia.
"We do not regard the concerns that Russia has as a barrier to the extension of the PCA," said James O'Shea, spokesman for the Irish Embassy in Moscow. The extension "will proceed more or less automatically."
But he stressed that the presidency recognizes the concerns and that negotiations are ongoing. "They will continue in a good environment, and we expect to reach the solution well before May 1."
The dispute over the PCA extension has deepened disagreement between Russia and the EU.
The EU has been trying to overcome Russian reservations to ratifying the Kyoto Protocol. The Kyoto treaty envisions allocating tradable emission credits to each country. Because the United States has rejected the treaty, only Russia can provide the critical mass to save it.
Speaking in Washington on Friday, Andrei Illarionov, a top economic adviser to President Vladimir Putin, complained that the EU's plan for emission credit swaps under the Kyoto Protocol would leave Russia at a marked disadvantage.
He said that EU trade preferences will give countries incentives to purchase excess emission credits from EU members before Russia. Illarionov also faulted the EU for not providing Russia with incentives to ratify the protocol.
"We are not in a hurry" to ratify, Illarionov told reporters.
The EU has indicated that Moscow may be drawing out the discussion over Kyoto as a way to speed up EU approval of Russia's WTO bid.
"I understand it as an attempt to get us to relax some of our demands for Russian WTO entry and then to compensate for that by signing the Kyoto Protocol," EU Enlargement Commissioner G?nter Verheugen told a German parliamentary hearing last week.
Experts, however, are beginning to doubt that any agreement is likely.
Russia-EU relations hinge on oil and gas exports, and neither side has a reason to move beyond fuel trade, said Igor Leshukov, director at the Institute of International Affairs in St. Petersburg.
"They are saying nice things to each other publicly while engaging in protracted negotiations with no clear strategy. Even if they reach a technical agreement, it will be something that won't change the overall picture in any respect," he said.
Chirac calls on EU to have "more respect" for Russia.
eubusiness.com
24 February 2004
French President Jacques Chirac on Tuesday called on the European Union to have "more respect" for Russia a day after members issued an ultimatum to Moscow to sign a partnership deal with the EU.
"We have seen in the recent past behavior wich was not exactly what it should have been from the part of the EU vis-a-vis Russia," Chirac said at a press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Medgyessy.
"At least we should be able to talk on friendly terms... have a little more respect for Russia."
Chirac's comments came after EU foreign ministers Monday warned Russia of a "serious impact" on relations if Moscow fails to sign a new partnership accord before the EU expands deep into former Warsaw Pact territory on May 1.
The ministers told Russia to stop stalling on signing a new Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) to cover the 10 mainly eastern European states joining the EU.
The ultimatum was interpreted in Moscow as a threat of trade sanctions.
The EU signed a PCA with Russia in December 1997, setting out the political, economic and trade frameworks of its relationship with the vast country for the next 10 years.
But the accord now needs to be adapted for the EU's enlargement to encompass eight former Soviet satellites -- the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia -- plus Cyprus and Malta.
Russia is said to condition the signing of the accord on the meeting of several demands by the EU, including compensation for the loss of preferential trade tariffs after its former eastern European partners join the EU.
Moscow criticizes EU intentions to lift sanctions against China.
14:05 2004-04-21
Moscow critically assesses the position of the European Union, which is coming for lifting sanctions imposed on China and for simultaneous pressure on Russia as far as observance of human rights is concerned, a high-placed source in the diplomatic circles of Russia told RIA Novosti about this on Wednesday.
"This is barefaced cynicism, is it really so that China has outstripped Russia in the sphere of democratic rights and freedoms?" the source asked rhetorically.
In his words, the striving of Western producers to open for themselves the Chinese market of arms sales is quite understandable. "However this should not take place against the background of criticism lashed out at Russia over observance human rights in Chechnya," the source said.
He also stated that "the expected lifting of EU sanctions against China would not lead to a sharp expansion of the military-technical cooperation of the European countries with Beijing. "The list of products China is interested in can be manufactured only by Russia and the USA," the source said.
The EU imposed the embargo on supplies of weapons to China in June 1999 after the suppression of the students' demonstration and disturbances in Beijing, in particular in the Tianmen Square.
The European Union and Russia said Thursday that they have all but resolved their differences over the EU's expansion to Russia's borders on May 1, with both sides reaching a compromise on cargo shipments to Kaliningrad and Moscow apparently dropping its complaints about discrimination against Russian-speaking minorities in the Baltics.
But progress on negotiations on Russia's entry into the World Trade Organization remained slow, and EU officials Thursday reportedly offered Moscow smoother accession in exchange for ratification of the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gases.
European Commission President Romano Prodi said Russia will sign an amendment extending the key Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with the EU to the 10 accession countries Tuesday. Moscow had previously balked at extending the treaty, arguing that it would hurt exports to those countries.
Earlier Thursday, Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref and EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy announced that they had struck a deal on cargo shipments to and from the Kaliningrad exclave, which is wedged between incoming EU members Poland and Lithuania.
They did not go into specifics, saying some details still needed be ironed out. Diego De Ojeda, spokesman for External Affairs Commissioner Chris Patten, said the details will be released Tuesday, when the two sides will sign a number of agreements. "Russia wanted to make sure that the shipment of goods would remain feasible, and we wanted to make sure that all the rules would be followed. We seem to have found a way to reconcile both of these objectives," De Ojeda said by telephone from Brussels.
Russia and the EU earlier announced progress on several trade issues. In February, the EU agreed to raise Russia's quota on steel exports by 437,000 tons per year, or by more than 30 percent, to almost as much as the country exports to the 10 accession states.
Meanwhile, Russia appears to have dropped its objections to a Latvian law limiting the use of Russian in classrooms and Latvia and Estonia's language requirements in citizenship exams.
Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov sidestepped a question on the subject at a news conference, saying, "I hope that before May 1 there will be enough time and opportunity to ... agree on an appropriate common language on this issue in a joint communique."
Speaking alongside Fradkov, Prodi said that although a number of questions remain in WTO negotiations, "the political will is there."
Russia needs to resolve its differences with all the WTO's members before it can be let in. Russia's price caps on domestically consumed gas and electricity remain the most intractable issue on its decade-long path to join the WTO.
"Increasing [gas prices] would not mean aligning those prices to what they charge Europe," Arancha Gonzalez, the EU commission's trade spokeswoman, said by telephone.
She added, without elaborating, that "the Russians are considering increasing energy prices to industrial users."
Gonzalez also said the two sides have "slimmed down" a list of issues related to WTO entry and have made "some progress" on tariffs and services. They have also "agreed to accelerate the contacts between our negotiating teams."
But even as the EU condemns protectionism to its east, it is coming under criticism for its own closed market policies. Anders Áslund, a Russia expert and former Swedish diplomat, noted Wednesday that Russia exported at least 5 million tons of grain per year to the EU until 2003, when the EU shut out 90 percent of the exports. As long as Russia is not in the WTO, the EU can do this to virtually any Russian export, he said.
"I think the relations between Russia and the European Union will be bad many years to come. The EU is very protectionist," he said at a meeting commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Carnegie Moscow Center. "Russia must enter the WTO as soon as possible. It is the only protection it has."
Prodi on Thursday tried to persuade President Vladimir Putin to ratify the Kyoto Protocol by offering in turn to help smooth Moscow's accession to the WTO, Reuters reported. "[We need to move toward] making the Kyoto Protocol a reality without restricting economic growth," Prodi told Putin at the president's residence near Moscow. "We are pressing ahead with preparations to launch the world's biggest greenhouse gas market in 2005. Ratification will allow the Russian economy to diversify, allowing the economy to move away from relying on mainly energy."
Prodi told reporters that negotiations over Russia's WTO entry would be completed ahead of a Russia-EU summit on May 21.
The Russian press on Wednesday broadly lauded agreements signed a day earlier by Russia and the European Union on the EU's expansion, putting a positive spin on even the points widely considered to be Russian concessions.
"Europe Backs Down," the Vedomosti and Gazeta dailies proclaimed in one voice.
Gazeta said the potential "damage" to Russian trade from the EU's expansion has now been halved from the commonly cited figure of $150 million per year. An agreement on the duty-free transit of goods to the exclave of Kaliningrad and various other trade concessions are "a big success for Russian negotiators, experts say," Gazeta wrote.
Kommersant went even further, linking the EU expansion to Russian hopes for WTO accession. "As compensation for being willing to talk, Brussels gave Moscow 16 export guarantees, and this is a sign of a softening EU position in regard to Russia's accession to the WTO," the paper said, without elaborating.
The EU and Russia signed an agreement Tuesday on the expansion of the EU to Russia's western borders and to extend the EU and Russia's Partnership and Cooperation Agreement to 10 new EU members on Saturday. Under it, the EU will drop customs duties on cargo shipments between mainland Russia and Kaliningrad, lower trade tariffs, raise Russian steel quotas and honor existing contracts to supply Russian fuel to new members' nuclear power plants.
Many newspapers proclaimed a hazy joint statement on minorities as a victory for Russian negotiators. In what was widely seen abroad as a Russian concession, the statement makes no mention of Latvia and Estonia, two new members that Russia had wanted named to address its concerns that they discriminate against Russian-speaking minorities.
Vedomosti, which uncharacteristically devoted most of its EU article to the joint statement on minorities, said Russian negotiators are treating the statement as "our victory." It goes on to quote an expert who feared the agreement could be used by the EU to press Russia on its human rights violations in Chechnya.
State-owned Rossiiskaya Gazeta ran a short article noting that Estonia has begun moving its border troops from the Latvian to the Russian border and plans to spend 64 million euros ($76 million) to strengthen the Russian frontier.
Perhaps tellingly, no Russian paper ran the EU story on the front page -- not even Izvestia, which sent a correspondent to Luxembourg for the signing.
In academic circles, meanwhile, the EU issue remained on the forefront Wednesday, with leading scholars and experts sitting down at a round table to ponder why Russia and the EU have made so little progress in an area where their interests converge -- security.
"Russia and the EU could complement each other in security more than in any other area ... yet this is not the case," said Alexei Arbatov, head of an international security think tank at the Russian Academy of Sciences and a former deputy chairman of the State Duma's Defense Committee.
Arbatov said that while sharing positions on the seriousness of threats such as terrorism and proliferation, the two sides have not advanced far in practical cooperation. In part, the lack of cooperation is rooted in Europe's failure to develop its own military and security capacity in the form of a rapid deployment corps independent of NATO, he said.
Growing anti-Western sentiments in Russia also hinders closer security cooperation with the EU, he said.
Another hurdle is an unwillingness by many EU member states to let Russia help make decisions in security, said Sergei Oznobishchev, director of the Institute for National Strategic Studies.
"Russia has been assigned this golden chair where it is supposed to sit and do what it pleases -- such as whistle -- but not play any role in the decision-making process," Oznobishchev said.
RUSSIA'S LOSSES FROM EU ENLARGEMENT WILL BE MINIMAL.
MOSCOW, (Yuri Bortko, Director, Centre of Integration European Studies at the Institute of Europe, Russian Academy of Sciences, for RIA Novosti)
I have mixed feelings about the joint statement on EU enlargement and Russia-EU relations, adopted in Luxembourg on April 27. It embraces all of the sides' agreements reached by the admission of ten new states to the EU on May 1.
On the one hand, the EU made certain concessions at the last possible moment, though it could have done so before. On the other hand, the joint statement includes promises to take into account Russia's concerns over the near doubling of the EU membership. Promises are good, but what will they come to?
Any relations are always a compromise. Russians feel offended, to a degree, on the eve of the EU expansion. But this is logical, because the economic development of Russia and the EU is different so far. They are not equal partners because Russia is weaker. If it keeps progressing at the current pace for 5-10 years, it will grow stronger and have a more advantageous position at negotiations.
Russians feel sorry that the countries that had been in the zone of Russian influence so long and were our partners have deserted us. The zone of Russia's influence has diminished - but nobody is to blame for this. The old system has collapsed, very possibly because it did not work well enough.
Besides, the European Commission, with which we directly deal, is a cumbersome bureaucratic organisation. Its short-term interests sometimes overshadow its vision of the more distant future, which promises many more advantages to the parties concerned.
However, it is significant that Russia and the EU have come to an agreement on the cargo transit between Russia's mainland and Kaliningrad. This may be one of the most important agreements, because it has political overtones. The sides have agreed to continue working to ease visa restrictions for Russians travelling from Kaliningrad to Moscow and back. The organisation of high-speed passenger line between Kaliningrad and mainland Russia will settle the visa problem simply and effectively, as the train will pass through Lithuania without stopping.
Another agreement that caught my attention is the increase of quotas for Russian steel exports to EU countries by the amount equivalent to the volume of steel deliveries to the new members. The sides have also agreed to slash commodity tariffs from 9% to 4%, though the duty on aluminium will be raised, which does not suit Russia. On the other hand, Russia and the EU agreed that the customs duties on aluminium will be raised gradually within three years, including duty-free this year, +2% next year, +4% in 2006, and +6% in 2007. This will give Russia's exporters of aluminium to the EU time to get used to the new situation.
The sides have also agreed to simplify veterinary norms for Russian food exports to the EU. Europe agreed to allow Russian planes that do not meet noise standards to bring Russian tourists to Spain, Italy and France.
The EU has made a written pledge to monitor the situation with national minorities in the Baltic republics, above all Latvia and, to a lesser degree, Estonia. This problem cannot be solved overnight; it will take time because it means the Russian-speaking minority adapting to the fact of living in an independent state whose language they must know to become part of its society. This is much easier for young people. There must be a generation change at the political top; there must be people there whose attitude to the problem is not marred by any negative memories of the past.
Now a few words about the continued talks on increasing the Russian grain export quota, on the export of nuclear materials, and on anti-dumping procedures.
Will Russia gain from EU enlargement? Possibly, because customs duties will be reduced, customs procedures will be standardised, and the movement of cargoes will gather speed, earning Russia tens of millions of dollars. Standard conditions will be set for cargo transit, which is vital, as Russia will benefit from the expanded European market. It will have more possibilities for trade, including for exporting its commodities to Europe. There is a nascent shift toward easing visa restrictions between the EU and Russia; at least, the negotiations are underway.
So, I fully agree with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who said after signing the joint statement in Luxembourg that Russia's losses from the EU expansion would be minimal. There will be some short-term losses, but they will be compensated by short-term advantages. And there will be also a balance of interests, but it cannot be calculated precisely. In the long term, Russia will gain from EU enlargement, provided it itself moves ahead.
Russia and EU must co-operate but it is easier for Russia now to develop bilateral relations with EU members than with the organisation as a whole. Russia has considerably intensified its relations with France, Germany and Italy, and its ties with Sweden are wonderful, though contacts with Britain have lost some of their former vitality. Some new EU members (in particular, Poland) say a key task now is to restore relations with Russia and other eastern neighbours on a new basis.
As for Brussels, it has very strong bureaucratic traditions and tends to lecture Russia on some issues and sometimes acts as its patron. In other words, Moscow-EU rapprochement is viewed as Moscow moving towards Brussels rather than as simultaneous movement towards each other. But I think this misunderstanding will be cleared up soon. The stronger Russia becomes, the simpler it will be for it to talk to the EU. This is when the era of genuine partnership will begin.
January 26, 2005 By Toby Westerman Copyright 2005 International News Analysis Today www.inatoday.com
The visit to Moscow by Ukraine's newly elected president signals that his nation remains within the reach of the Russian bear's embrace, and implies a stark warning for Europe -- and the United States.
Despite appointing a Prime Minister described as "anti-Kremlin," the first foreign visit for Viktor Yushchenko was to Moscow, where, according to reports, he appeared "reserved," and "nervous," and eventually declared Russia to be Ukraine's "eternal strategic partner."
Yushchenko has promised his countrymen that he will turn Ukraine away from its present Russian orientation and toward the West, especially the E.U. His task is formidable, since Ukraine is tightly bound to Russia through economic and energy ties.
During his Moscow visit, Russian President Vladimir Putin reminded Yushcenko that 60 percent of Ukrainian trade is with Russia, and noted that there has been a constant growth of commercial activity between the two nations, Itar-Tass' Russian Internet site reported. Yushchenko gave his commitment to keeping Russian--Ukrainian relations stabile.
Even if Yushchenko is able to expand ties with Western Europe, Ukraine will still be bound to Moscow by substantial ties of oil and gas imports, commercial investment, and strong ethnic bonds. The eastern half of Ukraine is Russian-speaking, and in the weeks prior to the November elections, former president Kuchma and Putin even discussed common citizenship between Russia and Ukraine.
Some observers now fear that the European Union may be slipping into a dependent relationship with Moscow, similar to that of Ukraine.
Russia supplies 44 percent of the E.U.'s gas and 18 percent of its crude oil. Should Russia become an integral part of the E.U. developing defense structure, as France advocates, Moscow's still powerful armed forces would make Russia the senior partner in any Euro-centered military organization.
The people of the United States and the nation's leaders should take note of the growing E.U. dependence upon Russia, and carefully watch to see if Ukraine really is able to free itself from dependence upon Moscow. The not-to-distant future will indicate the actual intentions of the "new" Russia to its neighbors and ultimately to the United States.
Russia-EU summit ends meeting of world leaders in Moscow.
Pravda.Ru
05/10/2005 14:50
The European Union is one of the basic political and economic partners for Russia.
The Russia-EU summit opened in Moscow's Kremlin Palace today. It became known prior to the start of the summit that Russian and European politicians had achieved the final agreement on the texts of road maps of joint Russia-EU spaces.
The agreement was achieved on May 9th at the meeting between the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Luxemburg's Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner and the EU Secretary-General, Javier Solana.
Russia and the European Union continue their consultations on the visa-free entry and the return of illegal immigrants, Itar-Tass reports. However, the European Union does not plan the cancellation of visas for Russian citizens in the nearest future.
The Russia-EU summit completes the series of international undertakings in Moscow, devoted to the Victory Day celebrations.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia's top officials are conducting negotiations with the EU administration: Jose Manuel Barroso, the Prime Minister of Luxemburg, Jean Claude Juncker, and the EU's Foreign Secretary, Javier Solana.
Russian and EU leaders set forth the idea of four joint spaces in May 2003, in St. Petersburg. It is a joint economic space of external and internal security, as well as science, education and culture. The officials failed to prepare the road maps for the project, although they were supposed to be ready in November 2004, for the Russian-EU summit in The Hague. The Brussels insisted on a single package of documents, in which commercial and economic relations would be linked with problems of human rights, the situation in Chechnya and conflicts in Moldova and Caucasus. Moscow in its turn suggested passing the documents, which the two sides would be ready to execute, and save the coordination of other issues for later.
President Putin is determined to touch upon the issues of the Russian-speaking minority in Latvia and Estonia, as well as the problems of the Kaliningrad enclave, Itar-Tass reports. The agenda will also include actual international issues, such as the situation in the Balkans, Iraq and Iran, the conflicts in Cyprus, the Middle East and the UN reform.
The European Union is one of the basic political and economic partners for Russia. The cooperation of Russia and the European Union is based on the partnership treaty, which governmental chairmen and heads of states signed in June 1994. The treaty came into effect in 1997. Russia and the European Union hold regular summits twice a year (spring meetings take place in Moscow, whereas autumn meetings occur in the state, which holds the EU chairmanship).
The European Union is a very important trade partner for Russia. The European market for Russia consists of over 450 million consumers and 25 million companies. The EU regards Russia as an important commercial partner as well, although Russia's role in EU's foreign trade makes up only five percent. On the other hand, Russia has been ranking sixth in the general import volume in EU states, following the USA, Japan, Switzerland, China and Norway.
