ANTI-RUSSIAN POLITICAL AND MILITARY ALLIANCE IN THE MAKING

The EU message (read the EU + USA) to Russia is clear: Choose the path to diplomacy and de-escalation or face increasing isolation and tighter and tighter sanctions.

The policy is one of continually stoking war hysteria against Russia, in order to isolate Moscow and shift US and European politics dramatically to the right. This includes increasing military spending and the US military presence in Europe. This means transforming NATO into an anti-Russian military alliance, with outposts in ex-Soviet states all along Russia’s borders in a campaign of permanent military pressure on Moscow.

EU leaders on 20/21 March 2014 agreed the following:

• Subject 12 more individuals to travel bans and assets freezes, bringing the total to 33
• Cancellation of the EU-Russia Summit
• Cancellation of bilateral summits
• No more participation of Russia in G8
• Blocking Russian membership in OECD and International Energy Agency
• Implement economic, trade and financial restrictions on occupied Crimea
• Only accept Crimean goods in the EU if they come from the Ukraine and not Russia
• Bring forward by several months the signing of association agreements with both Georgia and Moldova.

If the end goal is to isolate Russia, it is plain stupid. As remarked Henry Kissinger, isolating Russia is not a sustainable long range policy. It is neither feasible nor desirable to isolate a country adjoining Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The worst scenario would be for Russia and the West to work against one another around the globe.

EU and US sanctions will have a long enduring effect. Western sanctions and threats create certain prejudices that the people (high officials and businessmen) being targeted still will have for a long time. This will  not provide incentives for partnership or certain concessions and compromises with respect to these people in the future.

If Europe and the United States isolate Russia, Moscow will look East for new business, energy deals, military contracts and political alliances and this shift in pivot will change the world's overall balance.