By Nawab Khan, KUNA,
Brussels : European Union leaders are holding an emergency summit in Brussels Monday amid signs of growing rift within the 27-member European bloc on how to deal with a resurgent Russia following the crisis in Georgia.
But there is very little that the EU can do in practical terms, opine analysts.
Russia and Germany reportedly agreed on Saturday to calm tensions in Europe over the conflict in Georgia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier “agreed on the need to put an end to attempts to use the situation surrounding Georgia… to raise tensions in Europe by speculating on non-existent threats concerning other post-Soviet countries,” according to a Russian foreign ministry statement.
On his part, British prime minister Gordon Brown writing in the Observer weekly paper Sunday said the EU and NATO must reassess their relations with Moscow to prevent further “Russian aggression”.
He urged the EU to do a “root and branch” review of relations with Russia.
Last Thursday, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner was quoted saying that some EU states are considering some sort of sanctions against Moscow.
However, a senior diplomat in the EU French Presidency in Brussels contradicted this, saying there is no talk of sanctions on Moscow. “We are not looking for a showdown,” said the diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov condemned the idea of sanctions as the workings of a “sick imagination,” while Russia’s ambassador to the EU, Vladimir Chizhov, said punitive measures would be to the detriment of the EU as much, if not more, than to Russia.
The main aim of the short 3-hour summit is to send a message to Moscow that the EU is united in its position on the Georgian conflict. But what happens if the EU fails, as it has done in most foreign policy issues, to speak with one single voice.
EU foreign ministers already held an emergency meeting on Georgia followed by an extraordinary meeting of NATO foreign ministers but they sufficed by issuing statements of condemnation of Russias “disproportionate” use of force and voicing support to Georgia.
Russia responded by recognizing the independence of the two breakaway regions of Georgia South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The Kremlin also blamed the West for providing the pretext to separatist movements around the globe to claim independence by recognizing Kosovo.
Analysts here do not expect any strong response coming out from the EU summit due to differences among EU states and dependence on Russian energy.
National interests of individual EU member states hold sway over common EU interests. The two heavyweights in the EU, France and Germany, have huge economic and energy ties with Russia and hence they have little appetite for imposing sanctions or in adopting a tough position against Moscow.
EU gets nearly a third of its oil and about 40 percent of its natural gas imports from Russia.
Only a few EU members like the UK, Poland and the Baltic states Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania want Brussels to take a tough line against Russia.
Analysts opine that the most EU leaders can do is perhaps postpone or slow down negotiations on a new EU-Russia cooperation agreement scheduled to take place on 16 September.
The negotiations aim to deepen political and economic cooperation between the two sides and secure Russian energy supply to the EU.
Critics also point to the obvious double standards in EU foreign policy. The European bloc condemned Russia saying it violated UN charter and international law by invading Georgia. But when the UK invaded and occupied Iraq in violation of UN and international law, the EU did not issue one statement criticizing London or calling for sanctions.
The crisis in Georgia is an European problem but it would certainly have ramifications on global issues like Irans nuclear standoff with the West, Afghansitan, the Palestine question, issues where EUs cooperation with Russia is vital.
The world will be watching carefully what new strategy the EU is to develop in dealing with Russia.
However one thing is certain. The theory that bipolar spheres of influence in Europe are finished needs a deep revision following the war between Georgia and Russia.