| Topic: | Re:Re:Brexit benefits | |
| Posted by: | Francis Rowe | |
| Date/Time: | 22/05/23 07:58:00 |
| Actually, in this case Richard is probably not far wrong. The requirements of EU membership include rule of law, independent judiciary and press and an obligation to uphold human rights. The countries in Eastern Europe seeking to join the EU have had to implement changes to move towards these standards which has brought them head to head with the kleptocratic style of rule that was the norm in post-Soviet states. Russia continues to believe that it has a 19th century style 'sphere of influence' that overrides the sovereignty of these countries and that it can dictate to them. The populations of these countries including Georgia, Moldova and Belarus as well as Ukraine, overwhelmingly want to move to a rules based system. This is often represented as a desire by the EU (and in some cases NATO) for expansion but the impetus is coming from the countries themselves who wanted to underwrite their sovereignty. Richard is correct to think that this is a key reason for Putin acting in the way he did. |