As the Russian government strongly condemns Kosovo’s declaration of independence, Russia’s independent media voices are reacting with ambivalence to the dispute between their country and most of its Western interlocutors. Among reporters who maintain some distance from the Kremlin, the general tone is one of disillusionment with the West and concern about the condition of the international system, rather than full endorsement of the Russian government’s position. On the one hand, there is a widespread sense that intemperate expressions of anger by Russian officials do the country no favors. In “Rogozin Threatens NATO” (Gazeta.ru, Feb. 22), Natalia Kuklina quotes Dmitrii [...]
Russia’s NATO envoy Dmitry Rogozin backed off earlier statements, saying Russian would never use force to solve the problem of Kosovo.It’s always difficult to interpret a quotation taken out of context,even more so once it’s been translated. But my own feeling was thatRogozin had not been threatening the use of force in Kosovo, but ratherobserving that given how Kosovo was handled, Russia could reasonablydraw the conclusion that the only way to make itself respected moregenerally would be through the use of force. Either way, it’sreassuring to see that he was quickly called to order, signalling thatMoscow has no interest in [...]
In non-PKK news out of Turkey this morning, FM Ali Babacan reportedly communicated Turkey’s willingness to involve Russia in the Nabucco pipeline project during his recent visit to Moscow. If it seems like the offer undermines the logic of the enterprise, that’s probably because it does. The Nabucco pipeline was initially conceived as a way to diversify Europe’s sources of natural gas, thereby diminishing its energy dependence on Russia. (See this WPR exclusive for more.) But the project has run into problems finding adequate supplies ever since Russia snagged Kazakhstan’s and Turkmenistan’s reserves. Iran has offered itself as an alternative [...]
