Zee Beam News

Boris Shmelyov, director of the Center of Political Studies, for RIA Novosti - Vladimir Putin and George Bush will not solve the contradictions that have emerged in bilateral relations when they meet in Bratislava, but they can help smooth them over, which would be a major achievement. The results of their summit will have also a substantial influence on Russia-Europe relations. Many problems have complicated Moscow's relations with Europe, and with the West at large, which has provoked rumors about a crisis of trust. This has outwardly taken the form of sharp media criticism of Russia's domestic and foreign policy. The European press has started criticizing everything in Russia, alleging that everything in the country is bad. The Russian president has even been compared to Mussolini. The public and political mood in Europe is negative with regard to Russia, and sometimes hostile. The European Parliament and lawmakers in many European countries now use harsh anti-Russian vocabulary, which is only one step from becoming political practice. Where has Russia sinned? Romano Prodi, a former president of the European Commission, said attitudes to Russia began changing in September-October 2004, when representatives of the law-enforcement and military agencies were gradually taking over key posts in the country. Opinions on this may differ, but nobody can deny the Russian president the right to give key offices to the people he trusts. The tidal wave of criticism in 2004 reached its peak during the tragedy in Beslan, when the European media laid most of the blame for it at the door of the Russian authorities, and not on the cutthroats who perpetrated the massacre. Europeans are sometimes surprised by Russia's excessively nervous reaction to such criticism, saying that it comes from sincere and sympathetic friends. This may be so, and much of what Europe says about Russia may be true. The human rights situation could be better, and thereare serious problems with the independence of courts and the media, with civil society, and the inadequate lawmaking efforts of the State Duma. The recent protests over benefit reform cast a bright light on that. However, many other accusations are completely groundless. Russia is strengthening the vertical structure of power; governors will be not elected but nominated by Moscow. But this does not threaten European or global security. Maybe it threatens Russian democracy? I would say that anything that promotes social progress is democratic. The main obstacles to the development of democracy in Russia are irresponsibility and poverty, but the new political system is designed to eliminate them. Anyway, this is not a reason to conclude that democracy in Russia is dead. A painful process of normalization is underway in Chechnya, but the situation in the republic and the North Caucasus as a whole remains complicated and explosive. If Europe has practical proposals for solving Chechnya's problems, why not discuss them at joint conferences and seminars? Europe, though, only suggests talks with Maskhadov. What can we discuss with him if he represents no one and controls nothing? We will not discuss the independence of Chechnya with him. Accusations of neo-imperial ambitions are groundless too. Any state wants to have a belt of stable and friendly countries around it, and Russia is not an exception. It has had its share of problems with the Baltic countries. Europe seems to be keeping something back, despite the wave of criticism it has directed at Russia. It is making hints and expects Russia to understand them and to change its political conduct. Many people in Russia interpret these hints as an unwillingness to see it as an independent pole of geopolitical influence whose actions in Europe and the rest of the world stem from its national interests. Russia can be criticized for many things, some justified and other less so. But it cannot be accusedof undermining European and international security or hindering democratic reforms in other countries. Russia's international situation is not enviable. The new US policy of unilaterally solving global problems has led to serious questions in Russia-US relations. China is rising to a towering height in the Far East. The Islamic world is in turmoil in the South, and its giant stock of passionary energy threatens to explode in any direction, including toward Russia. Europe is promoting political and economic integration around the EU and NATO, but it does not want Russia in. The post-Soviet countries are accusing Russia of neo-imperial aspirations. And now the West is criticizing its domestic policy. Russia's history has always been tied with Europe, and confrontation would benefit neither party. They should stop seeing each other as rivals and abandon mistrust. They need each other to ensure international security, as well as each other's economic prosperity and cultural enrichment. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and may not necessarily represent the opinions of the editorial board.