Neither Russia nor the EU has a coherent idea about the place that they should have in their respective “systems of coordinates.” So both sides will probably not talk about the strategic aspects of their relations but will engage in horse trading, and lobbying for specific trade, economic and political interests. Its outcome will largely hinge on the intellectual, personnel, and administrative resources of the negotiating teams, their coherence, and professionalism.
Neither Russia nor the EU has a coherent idea about the place that they should have in their respective “systems of coordinates.” So both sides will probably not talk about the strategic aspects of their relations but will engage in horse trading, and lobbying for specific trade, economic and political interests. Its outcome will largely hinge on the intellectual, personnel, and administrative resources of the negotiating teams, their coherence, and professionalism.
When the Baltic countries entered NATO and the European Union a couple of years ago, many thought it was the end of the centuries-old "red line." Euro-Atlantic organizations had crossed into the former Russian and Soviet empires.
In September 2004, the Russian city of Novgorod hosted an international conference entitled Russia at the Turn of the Century: Hopes and Reality. Its organizers were the RIA Novosti news agency, the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, Russia in Global Affairs, and The Moscow Times.