Der Tagesspiegel published an article headlined "Osteuropa-Experten sehen Russland als Aggressor" ("Experts in Eastern Europe view Russia as an aggressor").
Over 100 prominent German and Austrian experts studying Eastern Europe have issued a memorandum calling for territorial integrity and statehood, Der Tagesspiegel informs.
The scholars believe that in the Ukrainian crisis there is an evident aggressor and a victim, the German newspaper writes. According to the experts, Russia has occupied Crimea and is continuing its intervention in eastern regions of Ukraine.
The authors of the memorandum stress that as a result of the war in the Donetsk Region that Russia has started, thousands of people have died, been injured, traumatized or forced to leave their homes.
At the same time Russia promotes xenophobia and prejudice towards the Ukrainian people, falsifies data concerning the country's social life and the situation surrounding linguistic diversity.
The authors of the memorandum agree that neither Germany nor Austria are interested in actual military conflict with Russia, but stress that the German and Austrian governments should support the statehood of Ukraine as well as the independence of such countries as Georgia and Moldova, the newspaper informs.
The Wall Street Journal published an article by Laurence Norman entitled "EU Aims for Influence A Little Closer to Home."
"For the past 18 months, Brussels has been absorbed by a struggle with Russia over European Union efforts to deepen economic and political ties with Ukraine and other former Soviet republics—its so-called Eastern Partnership project," the article begins.
"The outcome of that clash remains uncertain—not only in Ukraine, but in the likes of Georgia and Moldova, where Russian pressure and influence remain significant," the author writes.
"As it draws lessons from that crisis, the EU is recalibrating its goals. A new European Commission team is looking to exert influence in areas where they have real leverage—chief among them, the Balkans," the article reads. "EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and the commissioner in charge of enlargement talks, Austria’s Johannes Hahn, have promised to prioritize the region."
According to Norman, the challenges the EU faces in the region are significant: economic stagnation, entrenched corruption and Russia’s ability to complicate the region’s European path all pose threats. Meanwhile, many EU member states are skeptical about further enlarging the bloc—something Brussels has said won’t happen in the next five years, he notes.
"Whatever the anxieties about EU enlargement, there is a broad consensus within Europe that, over time, the Balkans has a future in the bloc. As the EU's clash with Russia over Ukraine has sharpened, Berlin has played an increasingly visible role in pushing for regional integration, diplomats say. A prominent Balkans summit in Germany in August set out various investment and reform ideas," the author writes.
"Yet there are tensions the EU must resolve in order to be successful. The biggest is how to balance the flexibility needed to coax these countries toward the Union with an even-handed approach to the states themselves and a clear demonstration to publics at home that tough reforms are being pursued," the article reads.
