Expert: Moscow prefers Europe to the US amid political attacks

World
Europe

By CGTN’s The Point

Although UK’s punitive move against Moscow over the spy poisoning controversy has won support from its European allies including France and Germany, an expert indicated that Russia is “gradually shifting its attention from the US to Europe.”

Speaking on CGTN’s The Point (@thepointwithlx), Andrey Kortunov, director-general of the Russian International Affairs Council, said that Russia might seek “collaboration” with the US who is “indispensable” on global affairs such as the DPRK and Syria crisis, but it appreciates “cooperation” with Europe as the latter’s approach might be much more “moderate”.

He noted that sanctions against Russia from Europe and the US are different, saying European sanctions are specifically “targeted” while the US sanctions are “general”. “No matter what Russia has done, the US sanction will be in place,” Kortunov said.

“Europe is more important for Russia as an economic partner,” Kortunov claimed, implying EU’s large investment in Russia and Russia’s energy supply in Europe.

“Probably we have more opportunities in Europe than in the US.” His belief came after Russian President Vladimir Putin planned to meet his French and German counterparts in late May, which he described as “positive development.”

Besides, Russia’s become an issue of US domestic politics after it’s been accused of meddling in the 2016 US presidential election, he said. “Anti-Russia emotions fly very high, not only in Washington but elsewhere [in the US].”

The US is experiencing a historic political crisis while the EU has demonstrated resilience disapproving populism through elections, he compared.

“The US-Russia relations are likely to be influenced by the overall political environment, which is not good,” Kortunov argued.

“When US President Trump is boxed, Russia for Trump is a toxic asset,” he continued, referring to the “technical collaboration” in Syrian battlefield that Moscow can only expect from Washington.

The Point with Liu Xin is a 30-minute current affairs program on CGTN. It airs weekdays at 9:30 p.m. BJT (1330GMT), with rebroadcasts at 5:30 a.m. (2130GMT) and 10:30 a.m. (0230GMT).