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Germany, Europe and Russia: Walls Instead of Bridges

The 25th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall was hailed with cheerful celebrations in the German capital. Many world leaders sent the usual messages of satisfaction and hope, including Pope Francis’s perhaps sloganistic intimation that “We need bridges, not walls!”. Nevertheless after a quarter-century the political balance of the situation unveils, unsurprisingly, that there might…

Logo of the RIAC think tank for research publications and strategic analysis with HEMEIS

PUSH and PULL, the double-faced strategy dividing the EU from Russia

The Ukrainian crisis is currently the leading factor weighing on Western international relations, with the EU being caught in an unstable position, torn between the U.S.A.’s pressure on one side, and the economic interdependency with the Russian Federation on the other. This article examines the current state of the issue from a diplomatic standpoint, and…

Logo of the RIAC think tank for research publications and strategic analysis with HEMEIS

European Union and the Vexed Question of Russian Gas

Winter is approaching and the European Union, following the lead of the U.S.A., is firmly persisting in its policy of sanctions against the Russian Federation. Yet the prospect of closing down of Gazprom’s pipelines, which cover about 30% of the gas requirements of the European area, seems now to be worrying the political establishment of…