Europe
Kouchner warns against antagonising Russia: "they want to play as they used to play"
NATO ministers yesterday said that "business as usual" with Russia is no longer possible, but only succeeded in agreeing to freeze the NATO-Russia Council, and pledging to establish a NATO-Georgia council. Several EU members added that Russia should not be isolated. The Kremlin dismissed the results of the NATO meeting as "empty words."
The WSJ has suggested that Foreign Secretary David Miliband's "EU-friendly approach" has led to a softening in the UK stance on Russia. The paper reports that the UK has moved away from the US position of "tougher talk", and aligned itself more closely with the French, German and Italian position of not antagonising Russia. "I am not one that believes that isolating Russia is the right answer to its misdemeanors," said Miliband. "I think that the right response is hard-headed engagement", he added.
According to the IHT, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner expressed some understanding that Russia "feels besieged completely by NATO" and that Moscow has legitimate interests. "I consider realistically that yes, they are tough," he said. "This is a great country coming back to the first rank in the concert of nations, and they want to play as they used to play, as a great country." He added, "We don't want to pour oil on the fire". According to European Voice, Kouchner also said that the EU will not reconsider the backing it has offered Russia in its bid for membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), saying: "We wouldn't want to put such pressure on Russia".
The Economist blog quotes a European diplomat from a country heavily dependent upon Russian energy as saying "it would be suicidal" to crack down too sternly on Moscow.
The Independent quotes Oleksandr Suchko of the Kiev-based Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation as saying "If the West swallows the pill and forgives Russia the Georgian war, the invasion of 'peacekeeping tanks' into Ukraine will just be a matter of time."
Russian military analyst, Pavel Felgenhauer, believes Ukraine could be next on the Russian agenda. "Russia right now wants at least half of Ukraine to be annexed," he said.
WSJ Independent Independent MacShane Guardian FT Telegraph Telegraph-leader IHTIHT-NATO IHT-Kouchner EUobserver EUobserver 2 AFP European Voice Economist Certain Ideas of Europe blog EU Referendum blog
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A leader in the Telegraph looks at a recent Lords report on recycling, noting that an EU directive - the Waste Framework Directive - requires Britain to double the amount of waste it recycles by 2020, something which is imposing extra costs on householders.
France presses for a common European response to recession worries
The idea of a "coordinated response" in order to cure recession worries, is slowly gaining ground among EU Finance Ministers, Le Monde reports.
Support for EU integration flagging amongst young Spaniards
A Sigma Dos poll for El Mundo finds that whilst support for EU integration remains on the whole strong in Spain, distrust is growing amongst the younger generation of Spaniards who are not so convinced of the advantages of the EU, and do not want a European army.
Sarkozy faces a backlash in France over NATO involvement following the death of 10 French soldiers in Afghanistan yesterday.
Irish Independent AFP BBC Guardian
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