Diction on a seesaw: a report on the RIAC conference on EU-Russia relations / Part 2
... declaration that enabling the free movement of people and goods is a top priority, there might be some hope for that. Step where? RIAC President Mr Ivanov said in his closing remarks that Russia and the EU had taken a step towards each other at the conference. Maybe so; but we need not imagine any plans to be drawn up at an event like this. The main advancement made here was mutually admitting the inevitability of Russia-EU partnership. Many agree that a common vision and mutual trust are preconditions for further cooperation. But care must be taken not to hijack the discourse by speaking in generalities and elaborating on run-of-the-mill ideas. Some European participants ...