‘Imposing sanctions against Russia isn't a good approach’

Sanctions will create trouble for the countries imposing them, for European countries and NATO, as well as for the target of these sanctions, for Russia, Alain Corvez, a former adviser to the French defense and interior ministries, told RT.

Corvez argued that sanctions would not help to resolve the Ukrainian crisis and that to find a way out, negotiations must be held.

RT:The French foreign minister said sanctions against Russia could be imposed this week already. Do you see the restrictions coming so soon?

Alain Corvez: I didn't know that the French Minister of Foreign Affairs said that. But I think that sanctions are not a good approach. They will make trouble for the countries which imposed them, for European countries, NATO and for the victim of these sanctions, for Russia. Already many Europeans say that sanctions are not a good idea. It is difficult to make any predictions; European diplomacy can take any decision. I think that it will be difficult for them to impose sanctions so fast. There haven’t been any negotiations with Russia yet.

RT:If the EU imposes asset freezes and visa bans against Russia, what effect will it have on the crisis in Ukraine?

AC: These measures will of course make trouble for Russians who want to travel to Europe just because it will be impossible for them. I have the information that this decision has not been made. Of course, the sanctions will not help to come out of the crisis. We must talk and talk seriously. Two points of view are absolutely different, of Russia and Western countries, USA and European countries. There is a danger of war. We must hold the negotiations, diplomacy must play its role. We must find a decision. Now we only hear about the interests of Europe but we don’t think about the interests of Russia.

RT:The EU parliament has dismissed the upcoming referendum in Crimea as illegitimate. But it's not the first case of regions seeking self-determination in Europe. Why no support for the Crimeans?

AC: You know, this is the law of the strongest. I have written about this in my article. The French writer La Fontaine has written about this in his fable “The wolf and the lamb” published in the 17th century. This is the law of the strongest and this law is always the best. This is the occasion. The European Union accepted Kosovo but it is against the referendum in Ukraine. The situation in Ukraine is not discussed seriously. It is discussed in the antagonistic way, by presenting two absolutely different versions of what is happening. It seems that the European countries do not even try to find the acceptable decision for both sides in this conflict.

RT:Russia's been struggling to draw Europe's attention to the issue of neo-Nazi groups gaining momentum in Ukraine. Why is it being downplayed by the EU leaders?

AC: Because they are anti-Russian. I have been today at the meeting in the military school organized by the Institute of Advanced Studies in National Defense. It was the debates, called “The Ukraine after Maidan.” But it was not really debates, four people participated there, all of them anti-Russian, expressing anti-Russian ideas. One of the experts asked them why you do not take under consideration the position of Russia. During these debates, which were not really the debates, it was an accusation of Russia, four so-called strategists, all French, one of Ukrainian origin and one of Georgian origin, said things like Putin is a brutal dictator, he will destroy the Ukraine, and that is why we cannot accept the position of Russia. It was a caricature. I hope that people will take under consideration global geopolitics and see that it is not as simple as deprived Ukraine. It is the attack of the USA and its allies to prevent Russia becoming a great power again. While all the European politicians and experts, like those mentioned, will support the idea that the Ukraine must become a part of European Union and NATO it is not possible to discuss anything. The facts are being falsified. They do not want to accept that Nazi groups came to power in the Ukraine, they say that they are democrats, that it is all Russian propaganda.

The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.