Commentary
A summer of escalation in the Black Sea has hurt Ukraine economically and is exacerbating world food security. A truce is needed—as is a broader reframing of Europe’s Ukraine strategy.
Thomas de Waal
REQUIRED IMAGE
Paper
EU—Russia Relations: Interests and Values—A European Perspective
Western media, many Russia scholars, politicians who are not in power, and much of the public see Putin moving Russia further away from democracy, human rights, and the rule of law as they are understood in the West. How can the EU forge a set of common values with Russia in order to further the bilateral relationship and better understand Russia's backslide from democracy?
By Rolf Schuette
Published on Dec 16, 2004
Summary
Western media, many Russia scholars, politicians who are not in power, and much of the public see President Vladimir Putin moving Russia further away from democracy, human rights, and the rule of law as they are understood in the West. The critics may disagree about whether today’s Russia can be described as a "managed democracy," an "authoritarian state," or a "new totalitarian state." But they all agree that the political system President Putin has designed and erected during the past few years no longer has much in common with western democracy. This paper looks at E.U.–Russia relations from a European and not a Russian perspective. Its main focus is to look at the question of how the issue of "common values" has figured in this relationship, especially when compared with the importance of other major issues.
Click on link above for the full text of this Carnegie Paper.
About the Author
Rolf Schuette was a visiting scholar in the Russian and Eurasian Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace during the autumn of 2004. He is a career diplomat in the German Foreign Service and has served at embassies in Moscow, Tel Aviv, and Rome, and at the United Nations. Until July 2004, he was the head of the Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova division in the Foreign Office in Berlin.
About the Author
Rolf Schuette
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Europe
- A Black Sea Truce Is About Global Food Security, Too
- Taking the Pulse: Does the EU Have a Germany Problem?Commentary
Are Germany’s economic, industrial, and political struggles becoming a liability for the EU’s ability to rise to the geopolitical moment?
Rym Momtaz, ed.
- The Speech Ursula von der Leyen Can’t DeliverCommentary
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is about to give her annual address on the state of the EU. Here’s what she won’t—but should—say.
Rym Momtaz
- How Europe’s 2027 Elections Could Test EU GovernanceArticle
Radical-right parties are expected to do well in upcoming elections in four of the EU's biggest member states. If successful, they could prevent the union from addressing key challenges ahead.
Stefan Lehne
- Europe Fails to Learn the Lessons from CeutaCommentary
The aftermath of the Ceuta crisis shows Europe has drawn the wrong lessons. Rather than doubling down on failed migration policies, the EU needs to address the underlying roots of such episodes.
Richard Youngs
