... level. The pause in the Minsk process has been too long, and there is a growing danger that we will lose the only legitimate mechanism of managing the crisis in and around Ukraine.
Andrey Kortunov:
Europe’s Greens as Future Strategic Partners of Russia
Second, assuming that there is visible progress in implementing the Minsk agreements, there might be an opportunity to modify the EU’s mechanism for Russian sanctions. This is not to say that Brussels should consider a complete lifting of sanctions. Nevertheless, sanctions usually only work if the side imposing sanctions ...
... peaceful resolution of the current conflict with Ukraine, which excludes the Crimea issue from the future negotiation process. Based on my research and observations, I believe Russian interests in Ukraine can be summarised in three key points:
First
, Russia is interested in the implementation of the Minsk agreements and reintegration of Donbass in Ukraine. In this case, Russia is concerned about the rights of the Russian-speaking population and their safety, and this issue will rank high on Russia’s agenda.
Second
, Russia aims at rebuilding its ...
... and Europe. Moscow demonstrates maximum caution and reserve in actions that could be interpreted as meddling in the domestic affairs of European states. Russian support for “Eurosceptics” and right-wing populists in the European Union peters out.
Russia succeeds in shifting the major responsibility for non-compliance with the Minsk agreements onto the Ukrainian leadership. The West becomes progressively more annoyed with Kiev, and this annoyance is further exacerbated by the slow and inconsistent implementation of the necessary socioeconomic and administrative reforms in Ukraine....
