Russian diplomats, contradictory messages about the status obtained by Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova as EU candidate states
Russian diplomats sent various messages on Friday about the decision of EU states to grant Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova the status of candidate countries for joining the EU bloc, the Russian MFA spokeswoman said it illustrates a Western strategy of isolating Russia and it will have ” negative consequences “, while Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the accession of the two countries to the EU does not present” any risk “for Russia, according to statements made by Reuters and AFP.
This decision “confirms that a geopolitical takeover of the space of the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States – which brings together several of the former Soviet republics n.red) continues to actively isolate Russia,” the Russian MFA spokeswoman said in a statement. Maria. Zaharova.
“They are not thinking about the negative consequences of such a step,” Zaharova added. According to the EU, the aim is to “establish relations with the neighboring regions based on the master-slave principle”.
Moreover, Brussels is resorting to “methods of political and economic blackmail” and is pressuring candidate countries to adopt “illegitimate sanctions” against Moscow, the Russian MFA spokeswoman said.
“This aggressive approach to the EU has the potential to create new divisions and new, much deeper crises in Europe,” concludes Maria Zaharova.
Earlier in the day, Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said that granting EU candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova was “an internal European affair,” while accusing the West. wants war with Russia, notes AFP.
It is “important” for Moscow that “all these processes do not create even more problems for Russia,” Peskov said, four months after Russian military aggression against Ukraine, which Western countries imposed sanctions on Russia and offered weapons to Ukraine. . .
For his part, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that an accession of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova to the EU poses “no risk” for Russia, as the EU is not a military alliance, and recalled that President Putin does not oppose this either. thing. accessions.
Such a statement by the Kremlin leader, referring to Ukraine, was made last Friday. “We have nothing against it, it is their sovereign decision whether or not to join economic unions (…) It is their job, that of the Ukrainian people,” the Russian president said during the St. Petersburg Economic Forum.
“Unlike NATO, the EU is not a military alliance,” so “in terms of their economic integration, the choice is up to the Ukrainians,” Putin clarified Russia’s position on the issue.
However, the Russian president estimated that “Ukraine will become a semi-colony” of Western countries if it joins the EU. “It’s my opinion,” he added, reports Agerpres