Russia does not want confrontation with the West

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe adopted the Baku Declaration as a result of the annual session, held from June 28 to July 2. The final document was called after the hosting city of the meeting - the capital of Azerbaijan. The declaration ignores the results of the national referendum in the Crimea and condemns Russia's intervention in Ukraine.

Among other things, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, in its final declaration, which was published on the official website of the Assembly emphasizes "the importance of adhering to the principles of inviolability of borders and territorial integrity, peaceful settlement of disputes, equal rights and self-determination of peoples enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act. The organization calls upon the Russian Federation to abolish the annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol (Ukraine)."

The OSCE PA "in order to remove serious concerns of security in connection with substantial military actions of the Russian Federation along the state border of Ukraine" urges the Russian Federation to engage in a dialogue and collaborate in a responsible manner and in good faith on the basis of political and military commitments of the OSCE.

The declaration highlights active participation of the Swiss Chairmanship at the OSCE in resolving the crisis in Ukraine and the deployment of the special monitoring mission of the OSCE in Ukraine, as well as efforts of the OSCE executive structures and other relevant international organizations operating in Ukraine to ease tensions, strengthen stability and promote national dialogue.

The organization also calls for the establishment of the Interparliamentary Group on Ukraine on the basis of the OSCE PA to de-escalate the situation locally and support the extrication of the country from the crisis.

In addition, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly urges the Ukrainian authorities to conduct an objective, comprehensive and transparent investigation involving human rights organizations into all fatalities during the recent events in Ukraine, particularly the tragedy in Odessa on May 2, 2014.

On July 1, 2014, the OSCE PA also adopted a resolution, in which it accused Russia of the occupation of Ukraine.

Yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with ambassadors criticized the policies of NATO and the United States for their actions in Ukraine. According to Putin, the world was becoming more "unpredictable." In today's world, the conflict potential is growing, while "the basic norms of decency are being ignored," he said.

American journalists started writing that Putin was preparing for a confrontation with the West. Is it really so?

Pravda.Ru asked an opinion from the Director of the Institute of Politics, Law and Social Development at MGGU, political scientist Vladimir Shapovalov.

"A careful analysis of the president's speech shows that Vladimir Putin did not say anything new. What he said yesterday was the description of the position that Russia has been taking for many years already. This is a consistent position of Russia to defend its own interests," the expert told Pravda.Ru.

The expert recalled Putin's well-known Munich speech: "Therefore, this is just a continuation of the line and the policy that Russia has been running for at least 10-15 years," he said.

"Of course, it does not mean that Russia seeks confrontation with the West. Moreover, it is obvious that any confrontation is detrimental for Russia. We must be realistic and we must understand that it is fraught with serious losses for Russia. We do not want confrontation, this is not a Russian way, but it is vital for Russia to defend national interests, the interests of our citizens - the people who consider Russia their homeland.

"In this sense, I think that Vladimir Vladimirovich expressed a high degree of concern, shared by both the government and the people, in view of the catastrophe that we are witnessing in Ukraine. Ukraine is not an alien state for Russia. These are the people who constitute a part of our community, and Russia is not indifferent to the fate of the brotherly nation.

"This is neither a declaration of war, nor a confrontation. The remarks aim to defend the interests of Russia as a great power, the opinion of which has been important to the world for centuries and should remain so today," Vladimir Shapovalov told Pravda.Ru.

Pravda.Ru