And there is now talk of a sixth salvo of sanctions against Russia to try to make it listen to reason on the war in Ukraine. Extraordinary summit in Brussels today and tomorrow (30 and 31 May 2022) with the objective of an embargo on Russian oil by the end of the year. Suffice to say that the objective will be difficult to achieve. Because it takes the unanimity of member countries to adopt such a system. And Hungary is firmly opposed to such a device, which would hit its economy, which is very dependent on Russian oil, head-on.
Threatened growth… Unless this cheap oil windfall primarily serves the financial interests of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s inner circle. In any case, in the Hungarian government, we are multiplying the campaign against these new proposals for European sanctions, Florence Labruyère.
The European eye of Franceline Beretti: Europe, a history of enlargements.
And Ukraine will also be discussed in June 2022 for another summit, this time on enlargement issues. kyiv would like to be considered as a candidate, but for the moment Paris and Berlin are above all proposing that it enter a European political community.
In the opinion of the French president and specialists, entering the EU will take at least ten years. The history of the successive enlargements of the EU confirms this. It is the European eye of Franceline Beretti.
The Orthodox Churches and the War
As a result of the war, one of the branches of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church announced its break with Moscow, and “its full independence” from the Russian spiritual authorities. The initiative is historic. It is the consequence of the positioning of the Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, unfailing ally of the Putin government, and aligned in its defense of the military operation in Ukraine as the regime calls it. Patriarch Kirill could also be on the list of personalities sanctioned by Europe. Estelle Levresseone of our correspondents in Moscow.
And in the three Baltic countries, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the Orthodox Churches are also seeking to position themselves vis-à-vis the Russian Patriarchate and its political commitment. It was in Vilnius, Lithuania, that the divisions and tensions were the strongest, with the suspension of five Orthodox priests. On-site explanations from our correspondent Marielle Vitureau.
Freedom of expression in question
And the Ukrainian war also reveals the difficulty of guaranteeing freedom of expression. As we have said, the word “war” has no place in the Russian media, we talk about a military operation. Many independent Russian journalists have been forced to flee their country. It is in this context that Europe chose from the start of the conflict to ban two Russian state media, Television Russia Today, RT and Sputnik. A necessary decision according to Professor of Political Science Frédéric Charillon, Author of “Wars of influence, States to conquer mindsat Odile Jacob. He was the guest last Sunday (May 29, 2022) of Crossroads of Europe presented by Lea-Lisa Westerhoff.
⇒ Listen on RFI: Crossroads of Europe “Freedom of expression and propaganda”