European Union (EU) leaders met in an extraordinary, emergency session on Monday, or September 1, as scheduled in Brussels. The topics for discussion at the summit are the situation in Georgia and the EU ties with Russia in light of the Georgia crisis.
Judging from information available prior to the meeting, the emergency summit can hardly reach any major decisions but just to urge both Georgia and Russia to abide by the six-point cease-fire agreement reached to end the fighting. Leaders from the 27 EU member countries have gathered for such a grand, ceremonial emergency session, and the fact itself shows that EU is "unable to do what it very much wants to do."
The motive force of EU for its existence and development is to ensure the security of Europe. Today, Georgia and Russia have got into hostilities at its doorsteps and, in the eyes of EU, this poses a direct, immediate threat to its security and so it cannot sit idle by. So shortly after the outbreak of the conflict, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner zoomed off to Moscow and Tbilis, the capital of Georgia，for diplomatic shuttle maneuvering. France, the current EU rotary chairman country, reached the six-point cease-fire agreement with the parties concerned, and won the championship in EU diplomacy.
Since the signing of the six-point ceasefire agreement, EU has played the role of a leading diplomatic mediator in the Georgia-Russia conflict and tried to capitalize on this position to help build lasting peace in the region.
EU has insisted that the solution of the Georgia-Russia conflict should be under EU auspices, although the U.S. influence in Georgia is vital beyond any doubt. Despite differences of EU member nations on their ties with Russia, however, their leaders have come to realize that they have to act in unison and work together. Otherwise, it is quite likely for another country to come to decide things on their behalf on the European Continent, and this is something they do not wish to see.
If EU continues to take orders from the U.S. in the Georgia-Russia crisis, noted the Russian side recently, then Russia will be obliged to talk with the U.S. on European affairs in the months or years ahead, and this remark of Russia's has indeed hit the "soft rib" of the EU.
The conflict between Georgia and Russia has given rise to a chain of shock waves in the region of the former Soviet Union, not merely in South Assetia and Abkhazian, which has long had separatist tendencies. Tension in Crimea of Ukraine and northern Azerbaijan would also aggravate, so the rivalry between Russia and the West over the region has been escalating.
Georgia has asked EU to impose sanctions on Russia and Ukraine hopes to establish its status as a candidate for EU membership as soon as possible; these nations all want to get their security guarantees from the EU. If EU fails to achieve anything this time, it is tantamount to declaring the bankruptcy of its good-neighborly policy in Eastern Europe, so its neighboring countries to the east would get disappointed.
Hence, EU wants very much "to develop its ability to the full." An extraordinary, special summit is held shortly after EU foreign ministers convened an emergency meeting on the crisis in Georgia on August 19. Nevertheless, it still cannot get tough in the face of Russia, because it neither has "a spurt of energy" nor "it is congenitally deficient".
EU doest not have "a spurt of energy" since it loses its "moral height". EU recognized Kosovo before Russia's recognition of South Assetia and Abkhazian. Therefore, EU lacks both assurance and justice on its part when trying to censure or denounce Russia.
EU is "congenitally deficient", because its 27 member countries are disintegrated on the issue concerning their relations with Russia. EU countries can roughly be divided into five parts or sections, according to the Council of EU foreign ministers. Cyprus and Greece are referred to as "Trojan horses", whose government often defend positions close to Russian interest with the EU, and are willing to veto common EU positions; the "strategic EU partners" imply France, Germany, Italy and Spain; the "friendly pragmatist" nations are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Finland, Hungary, Luxemburg, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia and Slovenia; the "cool pragmatists" indicate Czech, Denmark, Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, Netherlands, Romania, Sweden and Britain; and Lithuania and Poland are cited as the "new Cold War fighters". Under such circumstance, EU apparently cannot march in step to form a unanimous foreign policy towards Russia.
To date, EU still hopes to settle the Georgia-Russia crisis eventually and maintain peace and stability in the region by means of its cooperation with Russia. Consequently, EU will not impose sanctions against Russia, still less isolate Russia.
By People's Daily Online, and its author is PD resident reporter in Brussels Li Yongqun
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