Europe has an irresistible appeal for many Russians but after repeated rebuffs by the West, Moscow is coming around to the view that BRICS makes a better bedfellow.
In 1989 when Mikhail Gorbachev propounded his “Common European Home,” German sociologist Ralf Dahrendorf was among those who shot down that idea. In his book Reflections on the Revolution in Europe, he writes: “If there is a common European house or home to aim for, it is not Gorbachev’s but one to the West of his and his successors’ crumbling empire. Europe ends at the Soviet border, wherever that may be.”
Dahrendorf defined Europe as a political community where “small and medium-sized countries try to determine their destiny together. A superpower has no place in their midst, even if it is not an economic and perhaps no longer a political giant”.
Is European rejection forcing Russia to turn eastwards? Worryingly for Europe, is Moscow using the BRICS group as a way to steer policy concerning the West?
According to Professor Tadeusz Iwinski of Poland, Europe isn’t doing enough to open up to Russia. “Finland issues more visas to Russians than all the 27 countries of the European Union combined,” he pointed out during a discussion on “Russia and the World of the 21st Century,” at the 23rd Economic Forum held from September 3-5 in Krynica-Zdroy, Poland.
Clearly, Europe hasn’t quite figured out how to deal with the huge neighbour to its east. But one thing is abundantly clear – Russia’s relationship with the world is changing on a transcontinental scale.
Iwinski, who is the Deputy Chairman of Poland’s Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, says the geopolitical landscape has changed and the West now has to contend – and live – with powerful bodies such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
Read more: Why Russia prefers BRICS to Europe | Russia & India Report
In 1989 when Mikhail Gorbachev propounded his “Common European Home,” German sociologist Ralf Dahrendorf was among those who shot down that idea. In his book Reflections on the Revolution in Europe, he writes: “If there is a common European house or home to aim for, it is not Gorbachev’s but one to the West of his and his successors’ crumbling empire. Europe ends at the Soviet border, wherever that may be.”
Dahrendorf defined Europe as a political community where “small and medium-sized countries try to determine their destiny together. A superpower has no place in their midst, even if it is not an economic and perhaps no longer a political giant”.
Is European rejection forcing Russia to turn eastwards? Worryingly for Europe, is Moscow using the BRICS group as a way to steer policy concerning the West?
According to Professor Tadeusz Iwinski of Poland, Europe isn’t doing enough to open up to Russia. “Finland issues more visas to Russians than all the 27 countries of the European Union combined,” he pointed out during a discussion on “Russia and the World of the 21st Century,” at the 23rd Economic Forum held from September 3-5 in Krynica-Zdroy, Poland.
Clearly, Europe hasn’t quite figured out how to deal with the huge neighbour to its east. But one thing is abundantly clear – Russia’s relationship with the world is changing on a transcontinental scale.
Iwinski, who is the Deputy Chairman of Poland’s Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, says the geopolitical landscape has changed and the West now has to contend – and live – with powerful bodies such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
Read more: Why Russia prefers BRICS to Europe | Russia & India Report
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