Franziska Augstein, a columnist for the German magazine Der Spiegel, accused the West of alienating Russia and allowing it to move closer to China.
The journalist shamed the leaders of European countries for criticizing the human rights situation in Russia. She cited Saudi Arabia as an example, the friendship with which the West is valued in spite of torture, murder and other violations.
“As far as Russia is concerned, it’s not hard to guess that the Cold War continues in the minds of people,” she wrote.
Augstein called President Vladimir Putin a man of Western traditions and noted his contribution to the restoration of Russia. The journalist also recalled the speech of the head of state in the Bundestag in 2001.
“He proposed to create a free trade zone from Vladivostok to Lisbon. And also to admit Russia to NATO. Members of parliament applauded, jumping up from their seats,” she wrote.
The author noted that nothing has changed for the better since that time, because the West was still sharpening its teeth on Russia.
Augstein stressed that during his Munich speech in 2007, the Russian president made another attempt to reason with the West. Putin warned that the continuation of the anti-Russian policy, as well as interventions not approved by the UN Security Council, as in 1999 in Kosovo, would cause enormous damage to the world. He offered to cooperate with the West, but received no response, the article says. According to the journalist, in 2011 the Kremlin felt deceived when it agreed to the creation of a no-fly zone in Libya, which later led to the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi and the loss of statehood.
“Russia does not forget about the senseless wars that were fought in the name of democracy in Afghanistan and Iraq. The long-term NATO presence in Afghanistan has brought little results. Iraq has become uncontrollable after the overthrow of dictator Saddam Hussein”, the author continued.
At the same time, the West continues to condemn Russia for fighting terrorists in Chechnya, the observer added.
Augstein quoted an expert on Eastern Europe, Wilfried Jilge, who accused Russia of “approaching NATO borders dangerously with its troops and military exercises.”
“Such things can only be taken as a joke. After all, the situation is just the opposite: NATO, accepting new members, is getting closer and closer to the borders of Russia,” the author of the article recalled.
In her opinion, Moscow is not going to attack the Baltic states or Poland, but the West refuses to believe it.
“In recent years and up to the present day, Russia has been constantly coming out with initiatives, making proposals to the West. There has been no reaction, and therefore Putin began to establish contacts in another region – with China,” the journalist wrote.
She noted that the West perceives Beijing as a very big threat, and predicted negative consequences for Moscow. Augstein added that NATO understands that Russia does not threaten the organization, but still continues to arm itself.
“On the one hand, Russia is being told that it is just a” regional “power, as former US President Barack Obama did. On the other hand, it is called “aggressive”.