Valdai Club

Among Russia’s allies are leftists and rightists, but their position is due mainly to their reaction against Washington’s domination. With the exception perhaps of Poland and the Baltic countries, European politicians are not against Russia.

Mass media traditionally have an important influence on foreign policy, because citizens have no direct information on what is happening in the world. For this reason, European public opinion toward Russia is currently not very favorable, with a quarter of the population of the European Union feeling positively toward Russia. The best result is France, where 30 percent of the population regards Russia favorably, followed by Germany (27 percent). However, the majority has no real opinion. In the United Kingdom only 18 percent regard Russia favorably, 28 percent feel negatively. Forty percent have no real opinion. (Source: Pew Research Center, June 10, 2015)

As for political parties, the attitude towards Russia has nothing to do with the right/left division. In France, among those who are in favor of Russia are former Gaullists on the right and former communists on the left. People who are patriots and are in favor of independence for the country feel more positively toward Russia, because they feel that the main threat against it comes from the United States. So, the Front de gauche of Jean-Luc Mélenchon on the far left and the Front National of Marine Le Pen on the far right are both in favor of better cooperation with Russia.

In the center right party of president Sarkozy, les Républicains, a strong wing of the party with people like members of Parliament Thierry Mariani, Claude Goasguen, Jacques Myard and Nicolas Dhuicq, leaders like François Fillon, former presidents like Giscard D’Estaing and Sarkozy himself, plead for better relations with Russia and the removal of sanctions. The leader of the anti-Russian wing within the party is former prime minister Alain Juppé.

In the Socialist Party, which had historically strong ties with the US, the vast majority is hostile toward Russia, as is the case with current Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. A minority led by former minister Jean-Pierre Chevènement, who is a patriot and a Socialist, wants better relations with Russia.

In Germany, the tradition of national independence has always been stronger within the Social Democratic Party. The former socialist Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was a good example of this, and he now works in German-Russian business. The majority of Christian Democrats (center right) follow the position of Washington. The party Die Linke at the left of the Social Democrats is in favor of better relations with Russia.

In Italy, the center right (including Silvio Berlusconi) is in favor of good relations with Russia. Nevertheless, it is a question of the majority, left or right.

In the United Kingdom, Nigel Farage, the leader of the UKIP (United Kingdom Independence Party) is opposed to sanctions against Russia. The majority of Conservatives and of the Labor Party follow Washington's position.

Therefore, among Russia’s allies are leftists and rightists, but their position is due mainly to their reaction against Washington’s domination. If the United States had better relations with Russia, the so-called Atlantists would also be in favor of good relations with Russia. The business circles in nearly all European countries are opposed to the sanctions against Russia and some trade unions have to take the same position because the sanctions are also bad for workers and farmers. Some economists have said the sanctions have created two million unemployed people in Europe. Other figures like Vaclav Klaus, former president of the Czech Republic, or Spanish center right leaders are against the sanctions for economic reasons. Russia's allies are for the moment in a minority because of the influence of Washington, as I showed in my book “l’Europe colonisée” (the Colonized Europe). The great French economist François Perroux theorized this situation with the concept of the domination effect (effect de domination) between unequal powers. In essence, with the exception perhaps of Poland and the Baltic countries, European politicians are not against Russia. In the long run, the situation will improve, and more quickly if the relations between the United States and Russia develop, with such common tasks as the fight against terrorism.