Europe is betraying its own values and trades security for profit, which allows Russia to effectively employ the ‘buy and rule’ strategy, says Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė.
‘We must put a stop to this. All European countries must realise that, in the wake of such brutality against a civilian aircraft, we, the Europeans, must stop the mistralisation of our policies,’ the president told Lithuanian national radio LRT before leaving for a summit of regional leaders in Warsaw.
‘It’s deplorable that there’s a country in 21-century Europe that employs aggressive mixture of politics, neo-Nazi and Stalin-style methods against its neighbours. It goes without saying that such politics deserves a concerted response, unless we want the aggressor to go further,’ the Lithuanian leader stressed.
‘What we have seen so far is the mistralisation of European policies – i.e., signs that values and security are trampled on for the sake of profits. The “buy and rule” principles are coming into play. We must put a stop to this. All European countries must realise that, in the wake of such brutality against a civilian aircraft, we, the Europeans, must stop the mistralisation of our policies. We used to call it Schröderisation. Today, we see (our allies) selling military equipment and technology to Russia. Under current circumstances, it cannot be tolerated.
According to Dalia Grybauskaitė, some countries depend on economic ties, trade, especially energy reliance on Russia, and they are less vocal about their position, because the threat is not direct. If European states continue to act as indecisively as they have until now, this could be interpreted as an invitation for the aggressor to step up its aggression, she warns.
‘Just like Nazism was not stopped in the 1930s, so we see now the advent of Great-Russia chauvinism, which translates into actions like shooting down a civilian plane. This constitutes direct aggression against the entire European Union, all European states, against humanity. Those who organized, who ordered and supplied weapons must stand before the Hague Tribunal,’ the Lithuanian President said.
It is to be recalled that French President Francois Hollande said late on Monday that a first Mistral warship would be handed over on schedule in October but a decision on a second would depend on Russia’s attitude.
www.belsat.eu/en, via delfi.lt
