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“Russia makes a fool of the EU, but we let it happen.”

Aleksei Navalny is led from a police station after his arrest in Moscow. Photo:EPA

 

The World Daily | News Desk           FEBRUARY  8th   2021

 

The head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, was under the fire of criticism after last week's visit to Moscow. There are voices that the Spaniard should resign. “…Not just that Russia makes a fool of the EU but that we let it happen,” Guy Verhofstadt, MEP and former Belgian prime minister, wrote on Twitter. According to unofficial information, the matter is to be raised during the Wednesday meeting of the ambassadors of the member states in Brussels. Borrell, however, has “full support” from the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said a spokesman for the European Commission.

 

During his visit to Moscow on Saturday, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, had to deal with a series of affronts on the part of the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergey Lavrov.

Prior to a joint press conference with Lavrov on Friday, the Spaniard warned Russian hosts that the imprisonment of opposition activist Alexei Navalny has brought EU-Russia relations to a very “low level”. A moment later, however, he himself questioned this message, stating that no EU member state has proposed additional sanctions against Russia. Lavrov used the conference to accuse the West of lying about Navalny's poisoning attempt in front of Borrell, defining the European Union as an “unreliable partner” and attacking the United States. The head of EU diplomacy listened silently to the insinuations of the Russian minister.

Moreover, just before the press conference, Kremlin representatives announced the decision to expel three diplomats from EU countries - Germany, Poland and Sweden - for allegedly participating in unsanctioned rallies of support for Navalny on 23 January. Western diplomats have no doubt that this was intended to further humiliate Borrell and the EU, which the Spaniard represents. As a result, the visit was regarded by many commentators as a failure of the head of EU diplomacy.

“The aggressively arranged press conference and the expulsion of three EU diplomats during my visit indicate that the Russian authorities did not want to use this opportunity for a more constructive dialogue with the EU. (...) As an EU, we will have to draw consequences, think carefully about the direction we want to show our relations with Russia, and to follow determination,” Borrell wrote after his visit to the website of the European External Action Service.

 

“…Not just that Russia makes a fool of the EU but we let it happen.”

 

The head of EU diplomacy is also strongly criticized by Western politicians and diplomats. Some believe the Spaniard should resign.

“It's just terrifying,” said Guy Verhofstadt, MEP and former Belgian prime minister who attacked Borrell for not being prepared for the visit. “Russia is not only making a fool of the EU, but we are allowing it. Borrell should not have gone to Moscow without a message about the strength of the EU backed by a sanction mandate.”

 

The former Lithuanian Defence Minister, and now MEP Rita Juknevicziene, condemned the general message of the EU High Representative's visit, that Brussels and Moscow could cooperate despite misunderstandings. “Borrell has to think about resigning,” she wrote on Twitter.

US diplomats did not publicly criticize the Spaniard, but in the talks quoted by Voice of America radio, they admitted that they had serious concerns about Borrell's departure to Moscow and that the Kremlin would trap him, which it did.

 

“More than a dozen countries expect Borrell to report on what happened in Moscow.”

 

According to the Polish Press Agency (PAP), citing an EU source, Borrell's visit to Moscow is to be discussed on Wednesday at the meeting of the ambassadors of the Member States to the EU in Brussels. “More than a dozen member states expect Josep Borrell to appear at the meeting of ambassadors and report on what happened in Moscow. We want to know the details of this visit,” one of the EU diplomats told PAP.

Borrell's recent visit to Moscow is also to be dealt with by the College of EU Commissioners. Josep Borrell has the “full support” of the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission spokesman Eric Mamer said at a press conference in Brussels on Monday. The way the visit was organized, the course of the press conference, what Lavrov said, what the Russian authorities did towards European diplomats on the same day gave a very clear signal in which direction Russia is heading - emphasized Mamer.

On Tuesday, Borrell will report on his visit to Russia to MEPs in the European Parliament. The meeting will be devoted to the arrest of the anti-Kremlin oppositionist Alexei Navalny and the protests of his supporters.

On Monday, the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Poland to the European Union is organizing a videoconference with Navalny's team. It will be attended by ambassadors of 27 EU countries, as well as representatives of the USA, Great Britain, Canada and the European Commission.

 

© The World Daily 2021 | News Desk