Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy doesn’t make too many public pronouncements lately, but his views are still highly esteemed across Europe and the entire West.
Speaking candidly to France’s Point media outlet the former President warned: “Drop sanctions and reach out to Russia or drive it into China’s embrace.”
Sarkozy went further to describe as “counterproductive” economic the controversial sanctions against Russia. “Alienating Russia brings nothing but harm to European interests,” Sarkozy was quoted as saying, before adding: “Europe and Russia must work together in an atmosphere of trust.”
The former French leader warned that if the bilateral relations between Russia and the EU are determined in Washington, things can only get worse before they get better.
“The worst is yet to come,” he warned. “The US congress plans to asphyxiate 140 million Russians by depriving Russian banks of access to international funding,” he said.
The EU imposed economic sanctions on Russia in 2014 following its reunification with Crimea, an east Ukranian province which is 100% Russian in both culture and language.
Although the sanctions seeks to limit Russia’s access to capital markets, Moscow has demonstrated enormous resilience and strengthened ties with China, Iran, Turkey and India among others.
Europe itself has lost more than $100 billion dollars in lost trade with Russia during the period, proving that there are no winners amidst economic sanctions. In fact, to narrow it down even further, the worst losers are ordinary people.
The world celebrated euphorically when the Cold War ended and both the US and Russia signed an anti-nuclear treaty, the fall of the Berlin wall ushered in a period of hope and goodwill across Europe, the advent of the Fourth Industrial revolution weaved the universe into an inter-connected and inter-dependent world, yet mistrust persist.
The singular most dangerous phenomenon, in my book, is a world order where only one country stand as a superpower. For such extra-ordinary power in careless hands and unwise leadership poses by far the greatest threat to world peace.
A clear example of this is the latest move by the US under the leadership of president Donald Trump to unilaterally nullify a internationally recognized treaty between the US, EU, and Iranian over the development of nuclear capacity by Tehran.
All of a sudden, and the sole order of Washington, or at the behest of president Trump, sanctions are re-imposed on Iran for no credible reason and the world, almost without any option, has to dance to American tune or face the dire consequences of not doing as the US commands.
Yet we do have multi-lateral for a and the UN, home to all efforts and endeavour for world peace. No wonder a Third World War is not out of the picture. If one country is a bully to the rest of the world surely sooner or later there’s bound to be some kind of retaliation?
President Trump has exhibited propensity to unilateralism, and until someone whispers into his ears that under his policy the US is in the process self- isolation ordinary American citizens may live to regret a Trump presidency as they fall on hardship. We are all part of one global village and we need each other. There is no place for a bully.
