ONE CONTINENT — COMMON CHALLENGES
Chairman of the Russian State Duma Sergey Naryshkin speaks on results of 20-years old Russia-Europe union and two years of confrontation
This Sunday, February 28, Russia marks 20 years since it has joined the Council of Europe. It is not enough just to analyze what has been achieved to understand what outcome we have reached at this point. It is important to sum up other results as well: speak about problems, unresolved for years, reasons for keeping double standards, or the vitality of «cold war» methods. in this regard — to compare events of the past two decades with other similar stages in the history of the entire continent. I am referring to periods of sudden «cooling» in the relations between Russia and other European countries.
I can foresee the reaction: how could it be compared? It can be compared, moreover, it must be done so — in order not to repeat past mistakes at the least. It is necessary to document the similarities in Western policies of the past and present eras right now. Not waiting for the moment, when European partners once again turn to face us (a «thaw» in these relations will come for sure), we should ask them about uncomfortable but fundamental to our common future issues. We must work together to understand the complex history of our relations, so that in the future no one could be tempted to “revive„ long-standing disputes with the same ease after someone's ‘hue and cry’. In fact, normal communications will be restored after another round of anti-Russian hysteria but it will look like nothing unusual has happened instead of reviewing errors. However, it did happen.
During this two-year security crisis, we have seen a lot. Not only the USA’s attempts to throw its weight around and finish off two of unprecedented economic and trade agreements (Transatlantic and Transpacific) at once. Not only the mere desire of the West to weaken us, to get NATO closer to our borders, promising Ukraine a rapid European integration (despite its obligations under the CIS free trade zone agreement). It seems that the “plan„ of this new promotion consists of the entire set of political, economic and military purposes. However, it would have been impossible without the active participation of key European politicians.
I think that this period perhaps is the most dangerous in the history of our relations since the Cold War. Provocative actions of the USA and the European Union were aimed at solving quite practical issues. At the expense of other countries, mind you.
We can see it clearly now. It is supported by the words and actions of Western politicians, including reports of the NATO brave leadership about their recent successes. It turns out that the North Atlantic Alliance tripled its reaction forces just over the past year and carried out hundreds of exercises, involving tens of thousands of military, air force and navy units. The head of the Alliance is happy to share this news, rejoicing in making Montenegro part of it. By the way — bypassing democratic procedures, without a referendum. He is pleased with the fact that NATO countries do not cut their military budgets any more, while Ukraine, directly bordering with our country, lives through the outbreak of a real civil war and receives the «support» from the West. With all of this, the USA intend to quadruple the funding to support NATO allies.
I should stress that such «success» would have been impossible without rabid anti-Russian hysteria and false accusations. However, the NATO leadership cannot get enough of it — they are going to establish an additional propaganda department. Isn’t it interesting why?
Well, generals are always «getting ready for the past war,» even if it is an information one. But what to do with their other statements, saying that these preparations have nothing to do with the «cold war» period? After all, neither the USA nor the European Union impose any sanctions on Turkey, which shot down the Russian aircraft and has been trading in oil with ISIS, they only push it to confront Russia. They do not pay attention to the official United Nations estimates that it is oil revenues that are the key to financial support of ISIS terrorism.
The PACE also avoids criticizing Turkey, including it in the number of major contributors. At the same time, another structure of the Council of Europe — European Court of Human Rights — ranks Turkey second on the list of human rights violators over the past year.
In passing, I’d like note that the Council of Europe continues to ignore Ukrainian anti-democratic laws, media censorship, mass round-ups and detentions without trial, practiced by Kiev security forces, just ‘reprimanding’ the country’s leadership a little, sometimes. For two years, its Parliamentary Assembly has been occupied not with the care about international law or establishing a dialogue but only with politics.
It is high time for the Council of Europe to recall their statutory purposes and point out the inadmissibility of violating them by the PACE. However, the leadership of the Strasbourg organization prefers to distance itself from the appalling situation with the PACE, naming its current relations with Russia «exceptional». Exceptional indeed — from the rules of conduct, common to the Council of Europe! However, what kind of charter equality is meant, if an entire parliamentary delegation in the Assembly has been deprived of its rights for political reasons? Let me stress it — for political reasons, for our open position. Regrettably, the PACE has been the most notorious international organization in relation to Russia — being one of the key institutions of Strasbourg.
So far, our country saves the world from terror, the EU witnesses a growing awareness of the importance of establishing a dialogue with Russia on migration and economic issues — we can only marvel at the PACE's desire to engage in fictitious problems instead of real ones, once again. It is despite the fact that our country has been successfully cooperating with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (at a meeting in Vienna, which our delegation is to take part in tomorrow), as well as with the Inter-Parliamentary Union, other parliamentary associations.
We now have fully grasped the idea of methods, applied by the ‘tame’ Assembly in Strasbourg, managed from overseas. Presenting bureaucratic tricks as the will of member states, writing unlawful resolutions under the dictation of «supervisors», substituting these primitive papers for honest debates, and ignoring legal facts (including those set forth in our reviews of new Ukrainian legislative initiatives), and finally, permanently distorting statutory objectives of the Council Europe — all of this is not a novelty for the Russian delegation. Among the new things is a record-long period of the absence of one of the largest delegations — ours — at the PACE’s meetings over its 67-year long history. But this does not prevent members of the Assembly from waiting for full payment of Russia’s contribution as if nothing had happened and preparing observers for our elections in September, who no one is looking forward to seeing here. It is no secret to us, with what instructions they usually come here. Will it change after the arrival of the PACE’s new management?
Recently, Mr. Jagland said that the entry of Russia in the Council of Europe made the union «pan-European». I have to clarify: not made but promised to make. Back in 1997, Russian President Boris Yeltsin said in Strasbourg, “The Council of Europe has every chance to enter the new century renewed and aspiring for the future.„ As urgent problems, he marked attempts to „isolate Russia, put it at a disadvantage“, the practice of „double standards“, „discrimination against Russian producers“ and restrictions on the issuance of visas to Russians. He also spoke about the problem of mass statelessness in Europe today, expressing his hope that „this issue will be handled“.
Alas, it is still there both in the Strasbourg-based organization and in the arsenal of the West. Like 20 years ago, cold and hot is «in the same bottle» again! And «is shaken» almost with the same force as at the beginning of the 20th century, when the pre-war situation in Europe was inflating. On the eve of the World War I, as Maximilian Voloshin wrote, European nations «shone with abundance and general peacefulness» too, but then «demons rushed to the ground» and in the end «the time has come for all the eyeless…»
However, there is a fundamental difference between the current time and the above circumstances. The modern West conducts its two-faced policy with Russia, which has been a member to the Council of Europe for twenty years. Even accusations of “annexing„ Crimea — in spite of 97% of the Crimean people, who used their right to self-determination, enshrined in the UN Charter — do not work any more. Such techniques will not erase the guilt of Western politicians for unwinding the most brazing propaganda spiral in the history of our relations in the new, twenty-first century.
We are unlikely to forget it. Neither are European nations, unable to forgive their leaders for such blatant lies and losses from illegal sanctions. I think they will remind them about the deception concerning plans to build a Greater Europe. The failure is related to centrifugal tendencies within the European Union, which has clearly overdone it with taking the sovereignty away from its members. There are more and more of those, who are unhappy with it. A mere request by the UK to return powers to national parliaments says a lot.
The result of this two-year senseless confrontation is obvious. It has weakened all countries, traditionally called civilized, nationalism and terrorism raised their heads almost everywhere. Only the blind can fail to see that it is a serious threat to democracy itself. The main challenge to it now is mass poverty, illiteracy and militant obscurantism.
It is obvious that Russia — as a country with a traditionally high level of education and culture — is the nearest and natural ally of European countries in restoring the rule of law, civil liberties and the values of humanism. Suffice it to read our Constitution, recall our history to understand it and to see our unique experience in achieving inter-ethnic harmony and establishing a cross-cultural dialogue, which the European Parliament, frightened by waves of migrants, now belatedly calls upon.
At one fell swoop, our partners have jeopardized all common achievements of the past 20 years — harmonization of legal systems and created platforms for a political dialogue, mutual trust, growing tourism, unusually close cultural and economic cooperation, adding competitiveness across Europe.
I do not get tired of talking to our European counterparts: stop looking for enemies where there is none, open your eyes and see, where the threat to the very fundamental human values comes from. At such times, we just have to be together. We cannot let dark forces bleed the continent, being succumbed to someone's unilateral plans and irrepressible thirst for enrichment. The price is too high — the foundation of human civilization.
That is why true democrats and advocates of the rule of law should have to stop competing with each other in casuistry and seek for new occasions for confrontation but undertake to avoid «throwing the baby out with the bathwater». We must save our hard-won experience of twenty years of rapprochement.
This must be done in the name of Europe's well-being, of all its peoples. In the name of new generations that do not need old disputes and phobias of previous centuries. Our common continent should finally be freed of this heavy heritage.
Полная версия статьи: http://www.rg.ru/2016/02/23/naryshkin-my-ne-dolzhny-pozvolit-temnym-silam-obeskrovit-nash-kontinent.html
