The future of Europe depends on developing relations with Russia, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said today, stressing that the possibility of economically isolating the country should be rejected.
"There are those who believe that the Russian Federation should be isolated from economic relations with Europe. They raise the question so that it is necessary to choose between European unity and Russia. But to a bad question, you can only give a bad answer. In such cases, we must reject the question," he said.
According to the Prime Minister, when Europeans will be determined on the issue of cooperation with Russia, they will accept that "the solution is not about Russia, but about the future of Europe itself." "I have no desire to live in a Europe heading toward a new Cold War with Russia, making Europeans Russia's enemy," Orban said.
In addition, he expressed his support for Russia's initiative on economic cooperation and free trade between the European Union and the Eurasian Economic Union. "We think about how best to establish contacts between the EU and Russia. It's a good discussion of a common question," Kommersant cited the head of the Hungarian government.
According to Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, the EU economic war directed against the Russian Federation does not make sense. Tsipras didn't answer the question of whether Greece will vote for tougher sanctions against Russia, saying only that retaliatory sanctions from Russia inflicted great damage on country. "I want the European Union to be unified. But Greece is suffering losses due to the lack of Russian tourists, and sanctions have affected our agricultural industry," the Prime Minister declared.
The director of the Center for Political Information, Alexei Mukhin, told Vestnik Kavkaza, that the pro-Russian camp of the European Union didn't disappear anywhere. "The volume of trade and economic relations between the EU and Russia is over 400 billion euros. It is quite clear that someone has certain plans regarding this money. So this pro-Russian camp in the European Union are our partners. In this case, the relationship is built on a pragmatic basis. Tracking the dynamics of the development of trade and economic partnership you can monitor for a decrease or an increase in the camp," the analyst said. "If certain holes appear, Asian competitors instantly take it, which is certainly detrimental to the position of European business. As a result of several months, its representatives are looking for ways to bypass the anti-Russian sanctions," Mukhin concluded. For his part, the deputy dean of the Faculty of Global Economics and International Affairs of the Higher School of Economics National Research University, Andrei Suzdaltsev, said that "to talk about the formation of a pro-Russian camp among the EU countries is not necessary at the moment." "Hungary just actively uses disorder in the relations between the European Union and Russia, receiving good dividends from it. Putin's latest visit to Budapest brought this country benefits of $3 billion. This is just the discount on gas that Hungary will receive. It simply uses lack of normal contacts between the EU and Russia. This country does not feel any sympathy towards Russia. It just believes that relations with Russia are beneficial for it in economic terms," the expert said. "It's the same in the case of Greece. There is no sympathy for Russia. Maybe a little more, since both countries are Orthodox, but we must remember that Greece is in a very difficult situation and the Russian market, closed to Greek agricultural products, hurts agricultural workers, farmers, rural cooperatives. So that's all about profit. Orban also said that without Russian energy resources Europe will be less competitive," Suzdaltsev concluded.
The director of the Center for Political Information, Alexei Mukhin, told Vestnik Kavkaza, that the pro-Russian camp of the European Union didn't disappear anywhere. "The volume of trade and economic relations between the EU and Russia is over 400 billion euros. It is quite clear that someone has certain plans regarding this money. So this pro-Russian camp in the European Union are our partners. In this case, the relationship is built on a pragmatic basis. Tracking the dynamics of the development of trade and economic partnership you can monitor for a decrease or an increase in the camp," the analyst said.
"If certain holes appear, Asian competitors instantly take it, which is certainly detrimental to the position of European business. As a result of several months, its representatives are looking for ways to bypass the anti-Russian sanctions," Mukhin concluded. For his part, the deputy dean of the Faculty of Global Economics and International Affairs of the Higher School of Economics National Research University, Andrei Suzdaltsev, said that "to talk about the formation of a pro-Russian camp among the EU countries is not necessary at the moment."
"Hungary just actively uses disorder in the relations between the European Union and Russia, receiving good dividends from it. Putin's latest visit to Budapest brought this country benefits of $3 billion. This is just the discount on gas that Hungary will receive. It simply uses lack of normal contacts between the EU and Russia. This country does not feel any sympathy towards Russia. It just believes that relations with Russia are beneficial for it in economic terms," the expert said.
"It's the same in the case of Greece. There is no sympathy for Russia. Maybe a little more, since both countries are Orthodox, but we must remember that Greece is in a very difficult situation and the Russian market, closed to Greek agricultural products, hurts agricultural workers, farmers, rural cooperatives. So that's all about profit. Orban also said that without Russian energy resources Europe will be less competitive," Suzdaltsev concluded.
