On Roderic Lyne's "Russia in the EU? We should never say never"

Sir,

I regularly attend EU meetings where Russia is on the agenda, since there is growing concern about Russia’s regression into authoritarianism. Russia’s membership in the EU is not even a blip on the conference circuit radar screen, which makes me question the relevance of Roderic Lyne’s article. He seems out of touch with the discussions going on in Europe’s corridors of power, succumbing, it seems, to Moscow’s myths about a country that so far has failed to achieve democratic transformation.

Discussion in Europe of Russia is chiefly focused on President Putin’s use of energy as a foreign policy weapon, and also on the legitimacy of Russia’s presidency of the G-8 and the Council of Europe and its membership of the WTO.

The foreign policy professionals seem increasingly to conclude that Russia is moving away from western European values, not drawing closer as Roderic Lyne claims. A former US National Security Advisor has called Russia the most successful failed state in the world, while Mr. Putin’s former economic advisor, Andrei Ilarionov, describes Russia as neither democratic nor free.

Today’s Russia is not only the product of its autocratic past, but also the result of the failure of western leaders to confront Russia on tough issues. They repeatedly wish themselves into believing both Mr. Putin’s lip service to democratic values and that engaging Russia through the creation of special institutions for cooperation would tip the scales toward reform.

The transatlantic community’s lack of a coordinated and consistent foreign policy towards Russia has been consummately exploited by Mr. Putin, who paradoxically takes advantage of the new threats facing us by playing peacemaker in Kosovo and Iran as well as Hamas, yet at the same time aggresively seeks to regain political and economic influence in the countries that made up the former USSR.

Consensus has nevertheless begun to emerge not only on what is wrong with Russia but also on the strategies needed to deal with Russia.

For one thing, experts agree that to be normal Russia must first purge itself of past demons. We for our part should not excuse Russia’s behaviour on the grounds of the psychological shock of losing her empire, nor for her inability to find a new role in the world.

For another, western democracies must stand firm on their own principles and challenge Russia as they do other countries if Moscow does not meet the necessary democratic standards. No one would deny Russia the opportunity to play a role in Europe, but that cannot be at the expense of other European nations that have the right to conduct their affairs without interference from Russia, and without being subjected to relentlessly destructive rhetoric.

The question is not if and when Russia will become a member of the EU, but when and if Russia will become a trusted and respected member of the European commmunity of nations by meeting its international obligations, respecting its citizens’ human rights and the sovereignty of its neighbours. It is a question that only Russia herself can answer.