Russia in Global Affairs

The question of Russia's return to the G7 is not on the agenda of the summit, which will be held on May 26-27 in Taormina, Italy.

The G20 meeting in China was a milestone in international relations. Until only recently, world leaders were certain that the global economy and increased connectivity had helped stabilize and define the new world order. Now, however, the pendulum has turned back towards a classic game between the great powers, and Russia is again feeling right in its element.

G20 must complement its core composition with a consultative network that reaches out to other governments, business, civil society, and think tanks. Its aim should be to consult and cultivate, not command and control, so that others believe they have a genuine voice and are legitimate stakeholders.

While the BRICS countries are willing to protect Russia to some degree, their capacity to go along with Moscow is conditioned by their conviction that doing so does not hurt their ties to the West.

We need a substantial strategy of pricing policy and implementation mechanisms to avoid emotional shocks every time oil prices drop. The fuel market should be more controllable, balanced, and fair, as Russia’s national interests demand.

Although the upcoming G20 summit in Brisbane is likely to be tense, with host nation Australia unequivocal in its criticism of Russia, this international institution nonetheless offers more balance than other more Western-oriented international groupings such as the G8

Creating substituting production capacities, operating a semi-isolated financial system, spending resources to overcome trade barriers and looking for new markets will require enormous and unjustified expenditures, which will inevitably affect the competitiveness of Russia’s national economy and lead to the impoverishment of the population.

None of the integration projects in history has ever encountered so strong resistance from both East and West. Its intensity denies the publicly declared thesis that the project is artificial, immaterial and even doomed.

The cooling in Russia-U.S. relations over recent years has led to the end of the reset. This has culminated in Barack Obama's refusal to go to Moscow after the G20 Summit to be held in St. Petersburg.