If it is January it must be Davos,
Russia's Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev is criticizing European energy regulations and visa policies and insisting that his country isn't a corrupt place to do business.
Medvedev is trying to defend Russia's reputation in the face of a new report released at the World Economic Forum in Davos warning of risks ahead for his country's economy.
Speaking in Davos on Wednesday, he said it is "very sad" that Europe and Russia are fighting over energy regulations. The European Union is pressuring Russia to apply EU rules to the European operations of gas giant Gazprom. Russia is struggling to maintain its dominance of Europe's gas market.
He also criticized European leaders for "not hearing" Russia's arguments for visa-free travel in Europe — obtaining visas is a big hurdle for Russians doing business.
Last I checked Russia didn't have a visa-free policy toward the European Union. Ukraine, Belarussia and Serbia are the only European countries with visa-free relations with Russia.
3 comments:
European paranoia about Russia is unending.
Works both ways.
A Machiavellian perspective might be that the West is trying to strengthen the Putin regime... by opposing him. Russians have more than a little cultural xenophobia, even a student in PoliSci 101 would understand that, so I'm sure the folks at the State Department also do so. Likewise, if Putin came over and acted like the best friend of Obama, that wouldn't go over very well with the American people who may not be xenophobic, but are certainly delusional about the greatness of the US, and the threat of Russia.
Post a Comment