The Ukrainian crisis caused by systemic problems in European security

By Vestnik Kavkaza

Today at the Fourth International Conference on International Security, the Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Lavrov expressed the view that the conflict in Ukraine has no military resolution. “There is no alternative to a peaceful settlement of the internal Ukrainian crisis on the basis of complete fulfillment of the Minsk agreements of February 12th 2015. First of all, it is necessary to provide steadfast adherence to the ceasefire regime, the completion of withdrawal of heavy weapons, and verification of the process by the special monitoring mission of the OSCE.”

Lavrov believes it is necessary to “eliminate artificial obstacles on the way to a solution to acute humanitarian problems. It is necessary to make Kiev stop the economic blockade of Donbas, start a real political process, and hold constitutional reform, considering the interests of all the regions and all the citizens of Ukraine.”

The head of the Russian Foreign Ministry is sure that “the West should and is able to make the Kiev authorities reject the vicious course to glorification of Nazis and repressions against those who saved Europe from fascism… A political resolution in Ukraine should encourage overcoming the systemic problems which have been accumulating in the sphere of European security, as they are the main reason for the Ukrainian crisis. At the moment, we can see opposite tendencies and attempts to register new separation lines in Europe.”

Lavrov is dissatisfied with the fact that in Europe, “military vehicles and weapons are spreading, ships of the US Navy Forces stay put in the Black Sea. A subject of serious concern is still the American missile defense program. Surface missile defense systems will be deployed in Romania this year and in Poland in 2018. The group of ships with missile defense potential is growing. We consider this to be part of a global project which creates risks for the Russian strategic forces of containment and violates the balance in the security sphere.”

The Russian FM thinks that “by weakening partnership between leading states, we lose time for resisting really serious, not imaginary threats in the Middle East and North Africa… The growth of terrorism and extremism, extension of the territory which is controlled by Islamic State, increasing of inter-ethnic and inter-religious contradictions are a direct threat to international stability and security. They undermine the prospects of stable development of peoples in the regions which are close to us.”

Lavrov is especially concerned about attempts to stir up Sunni-Shiah contradictions artificially, using religious differences to achieve political goals, including imposing a scheme of approval of foreign interference on the UN Security Council.

The Russian FM believes that it is necessary to establish a network of regional structures which would be responsible for providing security in their regions. According to the minister, it will lead to a growth in the importance of the efforts being made by Russia and its allies and partners to provide security in the space of the CSTO and the SCO.