Radoslaw Sikorski: Europe should not seriously count on normalisation of relations with Russia

Russia will never be a democratic country and Europe should not expect to normalise relations with such an aggressive political regime.

This is the point of view held by Radoslaw Sikorski, Member of the European Parliament, Chair of the Delegation for Relations with the United States, as expressed in his speech at the Annual Meeting of Yalta European Strategy (YES) - "The Future Is Being Decided in Ukraine", organised by YES in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation. 

"In my discussions with Europeans I tell them that there is no need to try to normalise relations with Russia. It will never be democratic, it is more like an invader with a shahid belt on. The real question is how to stop this invader," he said.

In his opinion, different EU countries have different perceptions of security despite the fact that Europe is well aware of the aggressive nature of the Russian regime.

"A Belgian, an Italian or a Portuguese person perceives security or danger differently. The reason for this is the fact that no Russian soldier has ever stepped on their soil, or is ever likely to do so. This is where all these positions come from," explained the MEP and the Chair of the Delegation for Relations with the United States.

He added that not all countries on the European continent have an effective ‘Plan B’ to activate if their expectations of normalising relations do not materialise.

"The main reason for the dispute is that most countries do not have a ‘Plan B’ to use if the first plan does not work. Poland has a ‘Plan B’ in the form of 2% of GDP committed to defence," said Radoslaw Sikorski.