Russia at the Gates: The Ambivalent Neighbour

A new tension in the relationship between Russia and its western neighbours, particularly Latvia, has emerged since countries in the former Russian sphere of influence were brought into the EU and NATO. The EU should make use of the new Member States' knowledge of Russia acquired during their forced coexistence, in order to promote the emergence of effective cooperation with Moscow. The author argues that a rapid reduction of Russia's labour force, corresponding to its demographic decline, will advance Russia's political ambitions to return to the politics of power that existed in the nineteenth century. Russia will not stop trying to interfere in regional politics and will find new tools, such as energy, to do so. Russia's inability to offer an honest evaluation of history, along with its resurgence as an authoritarian state and as a military and energy superpower, does not reveal Russia as a friend of a united Europe.