'EU LOVES THE RUSSIAN REAR END' Borrell's diplomatic gaffe in Moscow

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - This is an example of how the EU loves the Russian rear end, said former leader of the British Tories, Ian Duncan Smith.

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, traveled to Moscow on a rare diplomatic mission that turned into a nightmare that he and Brussels will surely want to forget as soon as possible.

As Politico reports, the best symbol of the visit without a clear objective was the statement of the host, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who, while they both stood before journalists, unceremoniously called the EU an "unreliable partner" and accused European officials of spreading lies about the poisoning of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny.

Borrell, Politico writes, insisted on the trip, claiming he had only accepted Lavrov's invitation and explained that it was important to work on dialogue, even though the timing of the visit by the high-ranking EU official followed days after Navalny's arrest, which had drawn international condemnation.

Before leaving for Moscow, he told the foreign ministers of EU member states that he did not want to be a mere "postman" delivering their messages to Lavrov, although he did not present any concrete objectives for his trip to Russia, other than wanting to "put aside negative rhetoric."

Quite a challenge

It became clear that the joint press conference with Lavrov would be quite a challenge for him as soon as a reporter from the state news agency Sputnik ambushed him with a question about Cuba, luring him into condemning the US embargo imposed on that country. The reporter stated that the question was suggested by "American colleagues." The same reporter also caught Borrell off guard with a question about alleged human rights violations in Latvia.

The chief EU diplomat was visibly unprepared.

"Regarding Cuba... You surprised me a little, I didn't expect to talk about Cuba here in Moscow... You know that the EU opposes the US embargo, and we continue to implement this policy with regard to the new US administration. We expect the US administration to reconsider its positions regarding Cuba," Borrell said.

Lavrov readily followed up, highlighting the obvious disagreement between Brussels and Washington, and then accused the EU of hypocrisy regarding its policy on sanctions, alluding to the sanctions the EU imposed on Russia.

In the same vein, Lavrov continued on several occasions, condemning the EU sanctions imposed due to the annexation of Crimea as "unilateral and illegitimate restrictions imposed on the basis of untruths."

"And as for the question asked of me, how we view the EU's policy towards Cuba... Josep, I am not at all surprised by such a question. Whenever I travel to foreign countries, I am often asked about Ukraine, and now you have been asked about Cuba because the EU has quite important and intense relations with Cuba, and I think those relations are a very good common-sense example to follow and to avoid illegitimate and unilateral pressures and the use of embargoes and blockades," Lavrov said.

"Here, our views align with the European Union, that we can only cooperate with partners through dialogue, without any ultimatums, punishments, and unilateral restrictive measures that punish those who strive to develop normal relations. Such methods belong to the colonial past. I must say that it is very bad when the European Union starts to use such methods that were invented by the Americans," Lavrov added. This is an example of how the EU loves the Russian rear end, said former leader of the British Tories, Ian Duncan Smith.

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, traveled to Moscow on a rare diplomatic mission that turned into a nightmare that he and Brussels will surely want to forget as soon as possible. As Politico reports, the best symbol of the visit without a clear objective was the statement of the host, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who, while they both stood before journalists, unceremoniously called the EU an "unreliable partner" and accused European officials of spreading lies about the poisoning of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny.

Borrell, Politico writes, insisted on the trip, claiming he had only accepted Lavrov's invitation and explained that it was important to work on dialogue, even though the timing of the visit by the high-ranking EU official followed days after Navalny's arrest, which had drawn international condemnation.

Before leaving for Moscow, he told the foreign ministers of EU member states that he did not want to be a mere "postman" delivering their messages to Lavrov, although he did not present any concrete objectives for his trip to Russia, other than wanting to "put aside negative rhetoric."

Lavrov also said that he hopes these issues will be discussed in detail at the summit of UN Security Council members, which will be held at the initiative of Vladimir Putin.

"It would be important to use this summit to understand and clarify what kind of world we are trying to build, a multipolar world that will truly ensure the equality of all key actors, including the EU, or a multipolar world that will only be called that," said Lavrov.

Borrell said that Brussels is dissatisfied with Navalny's arrest.

"I conveyed our deep concern to Minister Lavrov and reiterated our call for his release, as well as for an impartial investigation into his poisoning," Borrell said, to which Lavrov replied that the Kremlin doubts the West's conclusion that Navalny was poisoned with Novichok.

A disastrous performance

All in all, Politico concludes, it was a disastrous diplomatic performance by Borrell, who admitted that Brussels had not taken any action regarding new sanctions against Russia over the Navalny case.

At the uncomfortable press conference, he stood quietly with a slight smile as Lavrov delivered the final blow at the end, calling the EU unreliable and expressing hope that EU leaders would put Russia on the agenda at their next summit in March to agree on a turnaround and adopt a new path in relations with the Kremlin.

"We are already used to the EU trying to impose unilateral restrictions, illegitimate restrictions, and therefore we proceed from the assumption that we are dealing with an unreliable partner. I hope that the upcoming revision of the EU's strategy will focus on the EU's key interests and that this will help make our contacts more constructive," Lavrov concluded.

The Kremlin's decision to expel three EU diplomats from Germany, Poland, and Sweden for participating in protests in support of Navalny added insult to Borrell's injury.

Immediately after the press conference, the European Commission was flooded with questions about Borrell's visit to Moscow, but the spokesperson merely reiterated at a regular briefing that the EU diplomat wanted to improve dialogue with Moscow and that the EU demands Navalny's release.

Diplomats disgusted

As Jutarnji list writes, numerous EU diplomats were disgusted by Borrell's Moscow episode.

"As we expected, Lavrov outplayed him. In football terms, Lavrov scored goal after goal, and Borrell missed chances. He had neither defense nor attack," one senior diplomat told Politico, while another stated that the press conference showed that Borrell was inexperienced and completely unprepared for the conversation with Lavrov, who played everything according to the rules.

A former high-ranking US national security official, who is very close to the new administration of President Joe Biden, told the British Daily Telegraph that Borrell's entire visit to Moscow was strange.

"It's a very bad sight to see the head of EU diplomacy in Moscow while Navalny is in a cage. It was strange. He shouldn't have gone there at all without first securing something concrete for his side, and as far as I can see, he got nothing. The Russians played with him," he said.

"This is an example of how the EU loves the Russian rear end," said former leader of the British Tories, Ian Duncan Smith.

(Nova.rs)