European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso
Photo: Dmitry Azarov
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Relations of EU, Moscow Depend on Democracy Quality, Barroso Said
The relations of EU and Moscow depend on the quality of democracy in Russia, announced European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, specifying, however, that RF President Vladimir Putin is a European leader.
According to Barroso, Putin is the most European leader of all that ever headed the states that are not the EU members. Asked about the methods of easing tension in the EU-Russia relations, Barroso said the fact that today's relations couldn’t be called smooth doesn’t mean the strategy is bad.
Russia, perhaps, goes through a number of internal problems, but the EU should proceed with standing for human rights, the official pointed out. Barroso said he couldn't understand why in the country with such strong enforcement bodies the journalists are killed so frequently.
The recent statement wasn’t the first time when Barroso came up with rather critical remarks about Russia. Days earlier, when commenting on the clashes of Russia and Poland, he recommended to Russia not to attempt to divide the EU, as it appears that the Kremlin treats some EU members, such as Poland and the Baltic nations, differently than others.
www.kommersant.com
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