MOSCOW, October 19. /TASS/. Europeans have little sympathy for Ukraine and are largely indifferent to the country’s future, Andrey Sushentsov, dean of the School of International Relations at MGIMO University, told TASS.
Unlike Russia and the United States, Europe lacks "full strategic autonomy and is not truly capable of collective action based on a unified position," he argued.
"Every major decision requires a consensus among nearly 30 countries," said Sushentsov, a member of the Scientific and Expert Council under the Russian Security Council. "There is no unified army. Europe falls far short of even the loosest form of a confederation. It would carry strategic weight if it could act as a single entity, but there is no sign of that happening."
According to the expert, Europeans "dread the prospect of being directly drawn into a military crisis with Russia like the plague." As a result, any discussion of deploying troops to Ukraine comes with the caveat that such a move could take place only after a stable peace has been established and a ceasefire is in force.
"To some extent, their enthusiasm is fueled by the perception that supporting Ukraine - and this proxy confrontation - comes at a relatively low cost," Sushentsov said. "They do not feel sorry for Ukraine. They are indifferent to what happens to the country, its borders or its population."
Astronomical sums spent to no avail
Sushentsov argued that Europe’s willingness to support Ukraine and sustain what he described as a proxy conflict is partly driven by the perception that doing so is relatively inexpensive. He noted that the European Commission has a limited budget of its own and relies primarily on the financial resources of individual member states.
"Despite sharing a common currency, each country calculates its debt separately," he explained. "The instrument available to them is debt financing - essentially, lending to Ukraine - and the total has approached $500 billion."
Although the sum is "astronomical," Sushentsov argued, it has failed to deliver the desired strategic results. Instead, he said, the support has further weakened Europe’s own position, with the money effectively "going up in smoke."
Loud voices, permanently on the sidelines
Against this backdrop, Sushentsov believes Europe’s options are limited to issuing forceful statements and staging high-profile diplomatic gatherings.
"All Europe can do in the current situation is express rhetorical outrage, convene summits, pose for ‘family photos’ and issue categorical statements," he said.
"In essence, however, this is nothing more than a gathering of spectators who are not actually taking part in the military crisis itself," he concluded.