On July 22,
a group of French MPs - republicans, leftist and centrist parliamentarians
arrived in the Crimea.
During their stay on the peninsula, the officials intend to learn
more about its residents and assess the level of living standards in the region
to give French citizens firsthand information about life
in Russia's Crimea. Pravda.Ru
asked senior researcher at the Center for European Studies at the Institute of
World Economy and International Relations, Vladimir Olenchenko, to comment on
the situation.
"I'd
like to see a noble purpose here. I'd like to believe that the French MPs came
to the Crimea to see real life there with their own eyes. The propaganda
machine works in the Western media to create an impression that the territory
was annexed forcefully, against people's will. Many Western publications say
that the living standard on the peninsula has declined. In a nutshell, they say
only negative things. I would like to see this visit as the beginning of the
process of normalization of relations. The Japanese have visited the Crimea
before, but they were not parliamentarians. Maybe, the visit of the French MPs
will become an example for others to follow," said Vladimir Olenchenko.
Almost all
of the French visitors are members of the right-wing Republicans Party, which
is not a pro-Russia party at all. Why did the French decide to act so? The French media believe that
the MPs came to the Crimea to sound out possibilities for the political course
of the next president of France.
"I
think there are two motives. The first one is to simply have an opinion,
because it's always interesting to listen to someone who express their opinion.
The second motive is connected with a search for reserves for the presidential
campaign. Smart and far-sighted policy-makers always look for opportunities to
attract electorate's attention and support. Russia and France have
traditionally had close relations. In France, there are many people who are not
biased about Russia. Those people, who intend to take part in next year's
pre-election campaign, may consider changing France's attitude to cooperation
with Russia. One needs to have some substantial material for that," said
the expert.
If Nicholas
Sarkozy takes office as president
again, will he improve relations with Russia? Will France lift sanctions
against Russia if Sarkozy wins?
"There
is a big difference between Nicholas Sarkozy and sitting President
Francois Hollande. Sarkozy
is a leader, who knows how to make decisions and demonstrate political will. In
2008, when then-President of Georgia Mikhail Saakashvili launched military
operations in the Caucasus, including against Abkhazia, Russia intervened and
repulsed the aggression. Sarkozy was the only politician who did not hesitate
to come into contact with the Russian side and offered his own plan that
eventually worked and cease-fire was reached. That was a very vivid example
proving that Sarkozy had no prejudice," Vladimir Olenchenko said.
Yet, there
is another force - Germany. Janis
Varoufakis (former
Greek finance minister) said in a recent interview with a British newspaper
said that Germany
was deciding everything in the European Union. Can France run its own policy that would not depend on the policies
of Germany and the USA?
"During Sarkozy's presidency, there was a very close and constructive
dialogue between France and Germany. The EU
was originally an economic formation that gradually acquired political colors.
Speaking of the economic side, Germany produces more than 20 percent of EU's
GDP. Germany has a right to determine the foreign policy of the European Union.
Germany is naturally recognized as the leading state of the EU, and there are
reasons for that. Germany's views and objectives may not coincide with those of
other EU countries, but this is a topic for a separate conversation,"- concluded
Vladimir Olenchenko.
Meanwhile,
Russia has proved to be more competitive than the United States, experts at the
Boston Consulting Group said. This became possible owing to the weaker ruble
and declining prices on oil.
According
to BCG, the competitiveness of the United States has been continuously growing
vs. the competitiveness of all other countries during the recent ten years. The
research was based on indicators of economies of 25 countries that account for
almost 90 percent of world exports of manufactured goods.
The index
consists of four components: wage level, labor productivity, energy costs and
national currency exchange rate. In 2015, the index for Russia amounted to 90%
(100% for the US), having dropped by nine percentage points.
In general,
the gap in competitiveness of the States vs. other countries began to decline
in 2015 against the strengthening dollar.
Earlier,
Bloomberg experts concluded that the Russian market has become the most
profitable one for investors in 2015 among BRICS countries, having pushed China
from the first position. According to the agency, investors are less worried
about Russia after the fall of oil prices and the collapse of the Russian ruble
in December 2014.
Many already believe that political risks are going to
decrease as well.
To crown it
all, Russia has climbed 29 positions up in the index of human capital, experts
at the World Economic Forum in cooperation with international consulting firm
Mercer said.
Pravda.Ru
Source: English Pravda 24-07-2015
