Fragment dintr-o analiza Reuters - Merkel hits diplomatic dead-end with Putin ( reuters/article/2014/11/25/us-ukraine-crisis-germany-insight-idUSKCN0J91EN20141125 ) Am selectat partea a doua pentru ca mi se pare relevanta pentru contextul razboiuui cultural si propagandistic declansat de Rusia in vest si in est, prin implantarea Russia Today, prin platforme filo-comuniste gen Critic Atac, Krytyka Polityczna (Polonia), Antifa si Forumul social (Republica Moldova), Borotba (Ucraina), dar si prin sustinerea fatisa, inclusiv financiara,a miscarilor extremist nationaliste in UE precum Frontului National in Franta ori chiar antisemitii pro-Hamas din Jobbik, in Ungaria. CHARM OFFENSIVE The second battle is against what German officials describe as a massive propaganda campaign by the Kremlin to convince Russia sympathizers in Germany and elsewhere in Europe to break with the hard line backed by Merkel and Washington. The most public example of this was an interview Putin gave to German public television station ARD. Broadcast on the eve of Merkels Sydney speech, Putin struck an unusually conciliatory tone, saying he was convinced there was a way out of the crisis. In a message tailored for his German audience, he expressed concerns about ethnic cleansing in eastern Ukraine by neo-Nazis wearing swastikas and SS symbols. As part of this campaign, Kremlin-funded broadcaster RT -- formerly known as Russia Today -- launched a German language station this month to put across Moscows view of the crisis. German media have been complaining for months about their news sites being bombarded with pro-Russian comments. German security sources say they are part of an organized offensive steered from the Kremlin. Putin has tools to influence opinion within the EU, said Ulrich Speck of the Carnegie Europe thinktank. He is doing his best to undermine the German narrative of the Ukraine crisis. Already there are signs of cracks. Matthias Platzeck, a former leader of the SPD, broke ranks earlier this month and urged Germany to recognize Russias annexation of Crimea. This week, Russian Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukaev is being hosted by Russia-friendly businessmen in Stuttgart, the heart of German industry. Outside of Germany, Russia is reaching out to former eastern bloc EU members like Hungary and Bulgaria, as well as Balkan states. Last month in Milan, Merkel was made to wait for Putin for hours because he lingered in the Serbian capital Belgrade to take part in a military parade. Russia also appears to be extending a hand to right-wing opposition parties in Europe. Frances National Front confirmed at the weekend that it had secured a 9 million euro loan from a Moscow-based bank. HERCULEAN TASK The Russian charm offensive promises to make the third big challenge for German diplomacy -- keeping EU partners united on sanctions -- far more difficult. The first set of EU sanctions is due to expire in March and will need to be renewed. German officials say Italy, Hungary and Slovakia will be the most difficult countries to keep on board. Putin will be trying to peel countries away in the run-up to March, said one. Another described the battle to keep the EU united on Russia as a Herculean task. Against the backdrop of this fragile EU consensus, ratcheting up economic sanctions further is seen as a no go in Berlin for now. That would change, German officials say, if Russian-backed separatists carved out a corridor of control from eastern Ukraine to Crimea by taking the strategic city of Mariupol. For Merkel however, the showdown seems to be evolving from a fast-moving tit-for-tat affair into a longer game in which the West slowly squeezes Russias struggling economy in the hope that Putin eventually blinks. Because we have ruled out war, some people may think they can do whatever they like with us, she said late last month at an event in the east German church where she was baptized, opening up to an audience of locals who, like her, had been taught to love mother Russia in their youth. We wont allow this, she added.
Posted on: Wed, 26 Nov 2014 01:04:15 +0000
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