On Wednesday November 23, 2022 – Following the alleged atrocities carried out by the Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime against Ukrainian civilians, Members of European Parliament (MEPs) have “recognized” Russia as a “state sponsor of terrorism” in its session at Strasbourg (France). Parliament adopted a resolution on the latest developments in Russia’s “brutal war of aggression against Ukraine”. MEPs highlighted that “the deliberate attacks and atrocities committed by Russian forces and their proxies against civilians in Ukraine, the destruction of civilian infrastructure and other serious violations of international and humanitarian law amount to acts of terror and constitute war crimes. In light of this, they recognize Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism and as a state that uses means of terrorism”.
Another severe and strange step taken against Russia to damage its geopolitical positioning, goodwill, and economic growth. After the US recent economic sanctions on Russia, after the Ukraine war, the allies have frozen over $50 billion of Russian government assets. What they say would be “used” for the “compensation to victims of war and rebuilding of infrastructure”.
The US-Russia confrontation is not merely a “cold war” between the two countries. It’s the combat of capitalism and communism. The disintegration of communist regions in the early 1990s have encouraged the US and its allies to continue spreading its war strategies to finally “eliminate” the communist countries. The February 2014 “Revolution of Dignity” in Ukraine was the first success of the US and its allies to “decommunize” the country. Though the ‘revolution’ removed the Kremlin-leaning government of Ukraine with the support of external elements, it could not change the conventional communist mindset of its large population.
The independent geopolitical observers believe that increasing fiddling by the Ukrainian authorities in the Kremlin-leaning parts of Ukraine and brutality exercised against the ‘friends of Russia’, and aggressive actions against the Russian Federation led to the war. The Russian government terms it “special military operation” to remove “revengeful and brutal” actions against its “friends”. The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was about to come to the negotiations, but could not do so. The US and the EU member states never desired peace in Ukraine but its NATO membership – a solid reason to stay at the Ukrainian borders with the Russian Federation to halt Russia’s geopolitical and economic spread.
Hundreds of people have died in the Ukraine war, fueled by the US and the NATO military shipments. Earlier, the Ukrainian Revolution of Dignity has cost thousands of lives. Many videos of Ukrainian soldiers have emerged showing them killing unarmed Russian soldiers.
Russia has also brought forward the footage of the US and NATO commandos engaged in the Ukraine war and the dead bodies of the killed ones. Yet, no action by the US-surrounded UN Security Council despite all the evidence provided by the Russian authorities.
Meanwhile, the EU parliament adopted the resolution that 494 voted in favour, 58 against with 44 abstentions. Seems, the EU is perpetuating the US conspiracy theory in haste, without having a legal framework to declare any state as a ‘sponsor of terrorism’. Declaring Russia a state ‘sponsor of terrorism’ without having any parameters to judge it seems authoritative, unjustified and shameless. The world shall not be run by the vested interests of the mighty capitalists.
As the EU currently cannot officially designate states as sponsors of terrorism, Parliament calls on the EU and its member states to put in place the proper legal framework and consider adding Russia to such a list. This would trigger a number of significant restrictive measures against Moscow and have profound restrictive implications for EU relations with Russia. In the meantime, MEPs call on the Council to include the Russian paramilitary organisation ‘the Wagner Group’, the 141st Special Motorized Regiment, also known as the “Kadyrovites”, and other Russian-funded armed groups, militias and proxies, on the EU’s terrorist list.
All the mighty states are taking up the steps to isolate Russia more. The EU parliament has called on the member states to complete work on the ninth EU sanctions package including Russia’s isolation internationally and at the UN forums, to reduce diplomatic ties with Russia, and to ban and to close the Russian state-affiliated institutions in the EU spreading “propaganda around the world”.
Ukraine is rejoicing over the EU decision. However, apart from Ukraine’s joy, there seems to be no other consequences of the European Parliament’s decision on Russia for the time being. It apparently seems a ‘solacing measure’ to console its citizens suffering from the soaring food and energy crisis that has hit entire Europe after Russia has cut down its gas supplies. Will the EU future legal framework dent Russia’s global interests? Seems it would do nothing but to add another to dusting documents in the EU parliament’s shelves.
The European Union is built in such a way that it has a parliament, but this parliament does not have any real power. It is designed to make thunderous statements. Especially to the enemies of the so-called “democracy”. These statements do not entail any real action on any level. At best these statements may attract the attention of the European press. Which, by the way, also understands that the statements are different from the EU policies and actions.
The EU Parliament resolution seems to add no more sanctions against Russia while its isolation would further enhance miseries of the West. The US, on the behest of which the West is taking all these severe actions against Russia, will dent the EU irreparable loss by furthering the ongoing inflation, food and energy crisis. The US has no sufficient surplus resources to meet the EU’s present crisis. Fear of severe economic recession looms large in the West if the states in the communist bloc take undesired measures against the EU states and halt the supplies. Secondly, talking up the $300 billion Russian assets and gold reserves will not be easy or justified. Rather, it would have its own consequences for the US and the West, and their allies. Much more than what the cost of two World Wars and the Cold War was.
