MINSK, 11 March (BelTA) - The West believes it has the moral right to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, German political analyst, Director for Science of the German-Russian Forum Alexander Rahr said in an interview to the ONT TV channel, BelTA has learned.
According to the political analyst, in the 1990s the West felt that the countries of the collapsed USSR began to reach out to Europe. It began working in this direction by welcoming citizens of post-Soviet countries and encouraging their return home with a Western mentality to senior positions.
“No one in the West is giving up the idea of further extending Europe eastward and creating an actually large ‘democratic' space as far as possible, as far as the borders of Iran and China, the countries that will definitely never accept Western democracy. The West believes that the post-Soviet countries were on this road in the 1990s and then left it. They blame Putin for this to a large extent, and that is why they are fighting with Russia,” Alexander Rahr said.
According to the expert, if the situation develops in this way, it could lead to a serious conflict. “The West still believes that it has the moral right to build up democratic institutions, strengthen civil society, and interfere in the internal affairs of Eastern countries. It thinks so because it is stronger. The West has always fought for freedom, but behind freedom were political ideas and, of course, issues of power within Europe,” he stressed.
Alexander Rahr also said that the West has two visions of how Europe should develop. The United States supports the concept that the countries of Europe should be built into the transatlantic partnership. There is a place for Ukraine, but not for Russia and Belarus. This concept is advantageous to Poland, Romania and the Baltic States, the political analyst said.
The elites of France and Germany have a different view. According to the expert, they advocate the formation of a common continental space and the inclusion of other countries, including Russia and Belarus.
“These two different concepts are fighting each other, and it is still unclear which one will win,” said Alexander Rahr. He also noted the continuing disagreements between the countries of the European Union, and the influence of the United States on these processes. “I think the European Union itself is losing its monopoly over Europe. It is no longer possible to say that the European Union is Europe,” said the political analyst.
