It was a masterclass in the worst of European Union diplomacy. Josep Borrell’s controversial visit to Moscow was a triumph. Sadly, though, for the Russians. In light of the treatment. of opposition leader Alexei Navalny — imprisoned this week after he returned to the country whose leadership had tried to murder him — there had been calls for Borrell to cancel his visit.
At the very least, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy needed to make a robust defence of the opposition, whose marches had been met with violence from the security forces, and whose leaders were being persecuted and harassed, to prove that there was genuine will behind the EU’s professed commitment to universal human values.
On Navalny’s arrest, Ursula von der Leyen had issued an underwhelming 54-word statement demanding his release. Was this just empty rhetoric? We looked to Borrell for clarification.
The Russians don’t really believe the EU exists — they feel that genuine power still rests with nation states
And that he certainly provided.
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