Irina Severin argues that all of Russia’s efforts to employ "soft power" -- which Moscow understands to be a synonym for "information war" -- inevitably end up turning into the use of “hard power.”
Although experts in the West generally agree that the Lisbon treaty won’t change the dynamic of relations between the EU and Russia, analysts in Moscow differ. The prevailing view in Russia is that the treaty could ultimately thwart Russia’s tactic of dealing with EU countries separately and of playing them against one another to promote its own interests. The biggest fear in Moscow is that EU consolidation will mean that Russia will have to play by the EU’s rules in the future.
Russia enjoys dabbling in the domestic politics of its neighboring countries, publicly supporting its favorite politicians, and demonstrating its contempt for those whom it dislikes. But it rarely -- at least among its European neighbors -- gets the result it is seeking.
The main intrigue surrounding the CIS summit last week was whether Russia's president would attend. The question intensified speculation that even the Kremlin has come to the conclusion that the CIS is a still-born organization.
Communist Party leader and acting Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin met last week in Sochi with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. How was the meeting – which was announced at the last moment without any agenda being offered – arranged? Why wasn’t anything more than a cursory announcement presented to the media? Was it Voronin who pushed for the talks? If so, he must have had some extraordinarily compelling arguments.
