Tense political relations with Europe have come into sharp focus in Russian domestic debates, forcing a sudden backtrack. The trigger to the anxiety was the recent (Feb. 4–6) visit to Moscow of Josep Borrell, the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, which could have been an important step in restoring dialogue but instead became a catalyst of discord. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov humiliated Borrell by denouncing the EU as an “unreliable partner”; and to add insult to injury, Russia chose that time to expel diplomats from EU members Germany, Poland, and Sweden (Ezhednevny Zhurnal, February 9; see EDM, February 11). A score of Russian pundits rushed to praise this toughness, asserting the Europeans were taught a lesson about interfering in Russia’s internal affairs (Rossiiskaya Gazeta, Feb. 9). Lavrov sought to reinforce the message and stated that Moscow was ready to break off relations with Brussels (RIA Novosti, Feb. 12).
OP-ED
Pavel K. Baev: Russia blackmails and courts Europe
A man wearing a face mask walks along an embankment of the Moskva river in front of the Kremlin in downtown Moscow on Feb. 11, 2021.
