... would have lost the OSCE-based principles of the European order.
Finally, the third option – a combination of firmness and an appealing project - runs the risk of being misunderstood by Russia in the same way the reset was misunderstood. The EU-EEU cooperation especially has its natural limits can cannot be ignored. For the time being, the EEU Commission has a mandate to handle just the trade issues, but one of the Union’s members, Belarus, is not a member of the WTO. For the EU, all trade ...
... practices for neutralizing this threat, so cooperation in counterterrorism should be decisively separated from problem areas of the bilateral dialogue.
Along with the above issues, the authors reasonably propose to initiate cooperation between the EU and EEU, underlining that the latter extensively employs the practices of European integration, while the potential for bilateral cooperation appears fairly high. In fact, the advancement of this potential is hampered by the web of political differences including ...
... Eurasia, to economic and social issues that could provoke instability in the countries of the region. In this regard, special consideration was given to the analysis of the risks that could hamper successful implementation of integration projects, of the EEU in particular.
In the RIAC report Elena Alekseenkova identified the key internal and external challenges to the region’s security. It was emphasized that, while recognizing the fundamental importance of widely discussed external threats in Eurasia,...
... focused in anticipation of an emerging leader and architecture. Considering historical path-dependency and shared political traditions, it is not a surprise that Moscow is already a center of the Eurasian integration process. Still, many argue that the EEU is merely a manifestation of Russia as a great power returned to the international arena rather than an attempt for regional stabilization through the means of economic cooperation. Nevertheless, only forecasts may be discussed at the current stage ...
On February 19, 2016 the Russian International Affairs Council hosted an expert meeting “Cooperation between the EU and the EEU: Realities and Opportunities.” The purpose of the meeting was to analyze the expediency of and prospects for international research on the subject.
The issues discussed by experts at the meeting were as follows:
1. Perception of the EEU by the ...
... regional conflicts in Europe. However, we need to agree on the interpretation and implementation of OSCE principles, such as territorial integrity, the right to self-determination, etc.
The EU could serve as a model for the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), including consultations on technical regulation, customs, tariffs and transportation issues. However, the future of cooperation depends on the possibility of the EEU demonstrating real economic and integration success.
The participants stated that ...
Question: Who has provoked the Ukrainian crisis? Was Moscow aware of the geopolitical, economic and reputational price it would have to pay for Crimea’s reunification with Russia? Do you think it was too high in the context of Russian-Ukrainian relations? Is there a lasting solution to the Ukrainian crisis?
Sergey Lavrov:
The Ukrainian crisis was not incidental, but rather the result of systemic problems that have been accumulating in European affairs and international relations over the past...
Differences between Russia and Europe have been discussed at length. The fact that these differences exist has taken root in political ideology and social stereotypes in the EU and Russia as well.
The only disagreement concerns the depth of the scission. On the one hand, some believe that there are deep and insurmountable civilizational differences. On the other hand, there is also a more moderate vision of Russia as an integral part of European culture and diplomacy, but with a peripheral economy...
... context of the meetings was arguably based on the issue of Russian allies’ loyalty to Moscow. According to the mass media, this time the CSTO member countries’ stance on the Russian Su-24 shootdown by Turkey, as well as the stance within the EEU on EU and Ukraine setting a Free Trade Area (FTA) and the suspension of the FTA agreement with Ukraine by Russia starting from January 1, 2016, could be considered as the indicator of loyalty. How important is the issue of loyalty within regional ...
... mostly supplies raw materials to its western partner (which account for up to 90 per cent of the total trade volume, according to
some estimates
), Belarus supplies products with higher added value to Russia and the rest of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU).
Following the negotiations in Moscow, Lukashenko called for Eurasian integration to be promoted further. He spoke about the plans to establish a single EEU market and develop industrial cooperation, as well as major infrastructure projects, the ...
