EU-Russia relations: mapping our common geopolitical future

A quick look at the map of Europe reminds us that a debate on relations between Russia and the European Union is not only a geopolitical necessity, but also a natural process because of their geographical proximity. Throughout history, European nations, including Russia, constantly experienced overlapping or contradictory interests. They therefore require constant dialogue to maintain stability and balance of power on the European continent.

Space (geography) and time (history) are determining factors in European geopolitics.  Identification of common interests based on the constraints of these factors is essential to map our common geopolitical future, and should prevail over political ideology.

1-Ultimate finality of EU-Russia relations

Konrad Adenauer, first German Chancellor of West-Germany, liked to recall that foreign policy objectives should prevail over domestic agendas! [i] 

Despite current obstacles and ongoing crises, long term thinking is necessary, because world trends indicate a shift to more precarious international situations. The emerging multicentred world should be the main impetus. If we want a cooperation paradigm to prevail, the central question is the following: can we, in the long term, envision a "Europe from Lisbon to Vladivostok" combined with a "Security space from Vancouver to Vladivostok"? The German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently reminded Europeans about the option of an "Economic space from Lisbon to Vladivostok" after full implementation of Minsk Agreements[ii]. The Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, on the other hand, previously suggested, in June 2008, a "new European security architecture".

There are reasons to be ambitious for the future. The aim of this paper is to outline the importance of taking into account geopolitical factors in EU-Russia relations (See map 1: "Continental axis for a better European, Eurasian, and global balance of power). In a multipolar word, stability in Eurasia can only be achieved through a balance between the great powers, not by an obsession with the doctrine of an ‘enlargement of democracy’, which served as a pretext for weakening "non western actors"  and increased mutual mistrust.

Russia serves as a useful counterweight in the context of a balanced policy on a world scale. It also constitutes the energy and commercial hinterland of the EU. The possibility of a strategic partnership between the EU and Russia should therefore be preserved.

We have to acknowledge that the ideological approach of "Westernisation" of Russia is not acceptable, just as much as it is unacceptable for Russia to impose its own principles on the EU. It is probably an illusion to think that EU and Russia will be able to resolve their different disputes, using a "one by one" crisis approach on a "sectoral basis". Linkages in negotiations (Kissinger doctrine) cannot be applied that way.

The long term objective of improving EU-Russia relations implies offering each other an acceptable place in our respective projects: Russia should be given a role in the European project, and the European project should be given a role in the Russian vision. Only then, the different ongoing crises might have a chance to be resolved in a more global deal.

Ultimately, this cooperative option would require negotiating new and sui generis structures to institutionalize this long term vision of a "Europe from Lisbon to Vladivostok" (EU membership is not an option since it is not even suggested by Russia). This would not be contrary to the basic principles of the European Union, since the EU itself is based on a sui generis process. This process allowed the EU to gain valuable experience (through both successes and failures) and to improve relations on a continental scale.

Which are the alternatives?

Weakening each other would only make both Russia and EU nations weaker towards external and stronger global actors. If these negative developments cannot be marginalized, the relation could further deteriorate to irreversible levels. The option of living side by side, with minimal interaction to accommodate our differences, on the other hand, is also an illusion because of strong interdependencies in crucial areas such as energy, commerce and security.

If no acceptable compromise on the future of EU-Russia relations can be found at EU level, we can expect individual EU member states to engage unilateral actions to improve or degrade their bilateral relations with Russia. Improving EU-Russia relations might therefore equally be necessary to contain centrifugal forces within the EU itself. A group of states within the EU could position themselves as a stimulus to improve relations with Russia. It would be beneficial however if the EU offered an added value by trying to balance all concerns, and thus avoid a more chaotic process since EU members are deeply divided on the issue (see Annex 1 "Improving EU-Russia relations to contain European Union internal fragmentation").

The reset of EU-Russia relations should not be treated as a subsidiary matter of EU external relations, but rather as a central question concerning the future of the European project. It should be considered as an opportunity to rethink the European project, because the EU is today facing a deep crisis and incremental scepticism from citizens. It is also an occasion to push '' strategic autonomy'' forward as proposed in the new EU global strategy[iii] ( (see Annex 2: " Geopolitical diagnosis and identification of common interests).

2-The need for Geopolitical compromises

Fixing our respective borders

In 2005, former Czech president Vaclav Havel said: "Historically, Russia has spread out and contracted. Most conflicts came about from quarrels over borders and territorial conquest and losses. The day when we calmly agree where the European Union ends and the Russian Federation begins, half of the tensions between the two will disappear " [iv]

In the recent and more ancient history of Europe, borders have always moved and the annexation/reunification of Crimea by/with Russia is only a small brick in a wide process at work since 1990 (Map 2 on border change after 1989). This question should not become an obstacle for EU-Russia relations, since this change of border can also be interpreted as a case of the UN "right of people to determine themselves", although Western states insist on the "territorial integrity of Ukraine".

To avoid future confrontation, clear borders and respective red lines concerning EU enlargement should be negotiated between Russia and the EU.

Membership of the Atlantic Alliance has so far filled the role of "anteroom" to the EU. The freezing of the Atlantic Alliance’s enlargement would also enable EU’s own project there to be halted. A renunciation of enlargement of the EU and the Atlantic Alliance into Russia’s ‘near abroad’ is the way to increase regional stability and improve relations with Russia. It is in the Union’s interest to reduce Russia’s perception of encirclement. [v] A buffer zone including Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova gradually transitioning  into a region of cooperation between Russia and the EU is a more realistic option. It would ease suspicion and dissolve Russia’s priority to break its encirclement by the Atlantic Alliance, to prevent further EU enlargement, which in turn would contribute to the clarification of borders of the Russian federation.

Fixing EU borders is also a condition to strengthen EU identity in the eyes of external entities. It would enable a clearer identification of its foreign policy interests, preserve its cohesion and attract more support of European citizens in the context of "enlargement fatigue". European citizens cannot identify themselves with the EU as long as EU borders are unclear. With stable frontiers, the EU would put an end to its dilution after successive enlargements. Leaving aside the Balkans, the negotiation of political alternatives to the prospect of enlargement is the best solution. 

EU's pursuit of enlargement today, is causing it to import the geopolitical fault-lines resulting from the historical frontiers which mark the Eurasian continent. This weakens EU’s coherence and identity and increases the risk of dilution.

Enlargement objectives are the result of a ‘domino effect’: it is a mean for peripheral member states to achieve a more central position (Germany, for example, a former "front state" wanted to be surrounded by allies after the Cold War). With the potential admission of Turkey, the EU would become a ‘Little-Eurasia’ and the question of admitting all southern Caucasian states would arise (Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, are already members of the Council of Europe). With a potential enlargement to Ukraine (Poland and Baltic states push in this direction), the EU would find itself directly facing the identity question between Russia and Ukraine.

Learn from past mistakes and abandon divisive strategies

Both EU and Russia should learn from past mistakes.

To ease EU suspicions, "leadership" of Russia in its "near abroad', should be given priority over the reconstruction by Russia of a "pyramidal power style" regional alliance. It should look more similar to the Franco-German leadership in the EU. Russia should also distance herself from plans to rebuild a US-Russia condominium and bypass EU member states in crisis negotiations. The return to a bipolar system in Europe is not sustainable in a context of emerging multipolarity. To get away from this trend,  EU member states should also have to be reliable partners and act in a more autonomous way (the Minsk group is the model but not the format of negotiations in Syria).

To ease Russian suspicions, acting as a more autonomous strategic actor (mentioned in the new EU global strategy) should be given priority by EU and it should distance itself from plans to position the European project as a sub-grouping of a "Greater West" led by the USA.  EU should avoid interference in Russian internal politics to promote exclusive "Euro-Atlantic" interests.  After engaging  the Eastern Partnership (EaP) in a forceful way, EU is now paying a triple price: more fragmentation of its geographical proximity in the civil war in Ukraine, more fragmentation with Russia, and finally, growing distrust from EU citizens (the negative referendum in the Netherlands regarding the free trade zone EU-Ukraine).

Double standard policies and threats are also counterproductive. The EU is sanctioning Russia for the annexation of Crimea to defend Ukraine, a non EU member state, but the EU is not sanctioning Turkey although they are occupying the territory of Cyprus, a EU member state. Instead, the EU is giving Turkey rewards such as negotiations on EU membership, visa liberalization and access to EU single market. Russia should reciprocally avoid treating EU Member States in different ways.

 

 EU and Russia should also avoid lecturing each other on international law since it is a matter of various interpretations and changes, which depend on the shifts in the balance of power.  UN "right of people to determine themselves" was advocated by the EU for the German unification, the Czech and Slovak independence, the Yugoslavia break up, but also for Russia in the case of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. In the case of Crimea today, on the other hand, EU is defending the UN "territorial integrity" principle whilst Russia, on the contrary, defends the "right of people to determine themselves".

Both EU and Russia are respectively used as scapegoats for their past failures in opportunistic ways in order to revive old failed geopolitical projects. Some European Federalist militants see Russia as a perfect adversary to revive the failed "fusion of nations" doctrine at a time of growing Euroscepticism. This attitude risks to trigger political forces in Russia, which consider no other alternative but to make the EU project fail as a retaliation[vi]. As far as the "information war" is concerned, there is also a worrying tendency to neo-Macchartist attitudes in public and political debates on both sides, where diverging opinions are less and less tolerated. This should be avoided, especially in the dialogues between experts and academics.

Regarding the ideological debate on values, the dialogue is too focused on "transnational values" deriving from "universal principles". These are mainly based on a unilateral Western interpretation (mainly Anglo-Saxon, because "gender", "multiculturalist", ultra-liberal ideologies are not part of the French or German historical legacy, but only recently surfaced with globalization). This approach is highly divisive as these values cannot be truly defined not between Russia and the EU nor within the EU itself (controversies with the ECHR in Poland, Hungary, France after November 2015 terrorist attacks are proliferating). In a multi-centred world, a growing resistance to any monopoly of the definition of democracy, or the "best model of civilisation" can be observed. The EU-Russia dialogue should put more focus on concrete mutual geopolitical interests on one side, but also on core common civilisational values, on the other. When we speak about "values", the dialogue should more strongly focus on the common European civilisation features shared by EU nations as well as by Russia (values like "Laicity" deriving from Christian values). This means religious questions have to be included in the dialogue as they are playing a crucial role in identity formation since the emerging multipolar world is also characterised by a strong "conflict of civilisation" dimension.

3-"Think global geopolitics, act eurocontinental!" or mapping our spheres of engagement

According to Clausewitz's principles, strategy consist in a set of priorities and actions articulated in time and space combined with a dialectic between two actors.

Let's have a look at a number of geopolitical ideas combining different steps in time (short term and long term agenda), and space (identify geopolitical priorities) to focus on common EU-Russia interests.

Articulation in time

In the short term, it would be wise to find "face-saving" mechanisms. It would avoid one of the parties to be seen as a loser in the different crises. It is a necessary step to rebuild trust within the current international and bilateral institutional forums. Nor EU, nor Russia want to be perceived as backpedalling from strong positions. The elections in France, Germany and in the United States might open new avenues for negotiations, with new governments eager to overcome the current crises.

It is time to renew EU-Russia economic cooperation and abandon sanctions as Russia needs to diversify its economy when oil prices go down. Neither can afford to try to weaken each other (USA took advantage of EU sanctions to rise its own market share in Russia). The policy of sanctions did not give any results. It was bad for the economy of both partners and added political mistrust.

Regarding the "narrative war" between EU and Russia, in times of crises and uncertainties, it is easy to fall back into old "Cold War" representations (This is actually only shared by a very small number of strategists and politicians). This obsession is also a generational issue as people having experienced the Cold War have more difficulties to adopt a new way of thinking. Therefore, exchanges between young generations should become a priority, following the Franco-German youth exchange model. In the long term, negotiations on visa liberalisation would also contribute to a better mutual understanding. For the adoption of a more similar diagnosis of the global evolutions and foreign policy doctrines, the sole way is to boost the exchange between experts, academics and politicians from both sides, using a multidisciplinary approach.

To promote EU-Russia relations in a very long term perspective, it is time to insist on common European civilisational values and organic characteristics in the context of the emergence of Muslim fundamentalism, the rise of other civilizations like China and India all backed by strong demographics, and the rocketing demography in Africa.

The Western world as a "geopolitical representation" gains in importance in today’s geopolitical situation.  The definition of the "West " needs a larger interpretation than the one used during the Cold War. In today’s geopolitical situation, it is time to recognise that the Western World consists of three pillars: USA, EU, and the Russian world, although the "Eurasianist" dimension of Russia will also stay an important feature of the Russian internal geopolitical debate. A more inclusive approach would foster dialogue instead of exclusion. It would provide more support to Russians aiming at belonging to the "Greater West"", and ease dialogue with "Eurasianists", allowing to focus on common civilisational features.    

This means there is a need for more cooperation in culture and education, as well as a need for religious dialogue between Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox churches, and other religions present in both entities.

Articulation in space

EU and Russia need to identify common geopolitical interests in order to engage in a strategic dialogue. Different scenarios can be suggested, at global, pan-European and regional levels.

At global level

As far as evolutions at a global level are concerned, it would be wise to anticipate the consequences of a potential confrontation/ condominium of USA/ China.

Together, EU and Russia could deter a worsening global scenario in case of spiralling effects of China-USA rivalry. They also have a common interest in avoiding any form of USA-China condominium. ( Map 3 "USA-CHINA-G2 scenario)

It should also be kept in mind that EU and Russia have a different geographical position. They have a different geopolitical centre of gravity and different security perceptions. EU territory lies in Europe whereas Russian territory lies in Europe and Asia. (See map 4 " Russia, territorial contiguity with the main geopolitical crush zones").

The EU can neither represent the whole of Europe in an exclusive way, nor can it extend itself to the Eurasian continent. A possibility would be to imagine a new netting of treaties and institutions, resembling the "Olympic circles", which would allow to maintain stability on the whole Eurasian continent.

There is a common interest in fixing the "missing link" of European security with the negotiation of new security and economic arrangements between EU and Russia at Pan-European level and on an equal basis. OSCE is important but specific institutional arrangements might be necessary (see Map 5 "the Olympic circles of Euro-Atlantic, European and Eurasian security – the missing link of European security).

Regarding Transatlantic relations, the "EU/NATO complementarity" narrative is an obstacle to more trust because Russia sees each EU movement as an anticipation of a NATO expansion (Eastern Partnership and "Sikorski doctrine").  EU has to recognise that it can have interests that are different from those of the USA and thus act in a more autonomous way.

It is also in the interest of both EU and Russia to avoid a worsening of the crisis around the NATO missile shield project.  Putting pressure on the US to ensure it provides proof that this system is not directed against Russia would be useful (See Map 6: "Missile shield project and the perception of encirclement of Russia and China").

At a regional level:  pan-european level and Mediterranean/Middle East neighbourhood

EU and Russia (with Central Asian States and China) have a common interest in containing   Islamist terrorism and instability originating from the southern arc of the crisis (from North Africa till South East Asia). These threats are endangering the security of the whole Eurasian continent because EU, Russia and Central Asia are increasingly targets of acts of terrorism.

EU member states have lost leverage in Syria to US-Russian negotiations. In this case, a more autonomous EU position from the USA would, once again, improve European visibility. Regime change doctrine and plunging in "unknown territory" should be abandoned. Only a large alliance between Syrian loyal forces, Kurds, Iran, Russia, EU Member States, and the US will be able to defeat ISIS.

EU and Russia also need to overcome the Ukrainian crisis in order to focus on Islamist terrorism as a priority threat. The successful implementation of Minsk II Agreements requires more pressure on the Ukrainian government because they are blocking the federalisation process.  Ukraine should adopt neutrality status and act as a bridge of cooperation instead of acting as a frontline between the "West" and against Russia (No NATO, no EU); (Map 7, "European Union squeezed between two arcs of crisis").

There is also a natural complementarity between EU and Russia as far as energy questions are concerned since they are neighbours: the EU needs a secure access to resources and Russia needs EU markets. It would be wise to anticipate the opening of the Maritime Northern route in the Arctic. The deepening of EU-Russia energy relations should be considered a priority in order to avoid dependence from the troubled Middle East countries (See Map 8: "The importance of Arctic space").

Other areas of potential cooperation to prevent looming crises that are also worth of consideration: 

-prepare consultations on the Libyan question because of a likely raise of ISIS and new military operations

-anticipate a potential crisis in Cyprus as the reunification process is very fragile and external powers might try to instrumentalise the question to foster their own agenda leading to further destabilisation

– reengage the Balkans to overcome the risk of new growing EU-Russia divergence

– renew military cooperation between EU and Russia in EU operations in Africa (like, for example, the transport with helicopters)

 

Annex 1

Improving EU-Russia relations to contain the internal fragmentation

of the European Union

One pivotal difficulty in EU-Russia relations is the diverging geopolitical vision of EU member states. This makes EU a more unpredictable partner for Russia. If the EU cannot define its own interests, suspicion about hidden objectives and alignment with extra-European  power objectives will hinder mutual trust during negotiations.

Faced with an enduring crisis, bilateral relations between EU member states and Russia might be used as a leverage to shift the relative geopolitical power rank within EU. This challenge has to be addressed in order to contain the growing multipolarisation within the EU itself.

Let's focus on France and Germany since the Franco-German relations are the "motor" of the European project. If the two countries are unable to find common ground, there is no progress for EU. The challenge is to overcome the new geopolitical rivalry between France and Germany since unification and EU enlargement to the East. The French perception of a shift of the geopolitical centre of gravity towards the East in favour of Germany resulted in compensation measures taken by France regarding enlargement and neighbourhood priorities. Within an enlarged EU, different geopolitical priorities and security perceptions make it difficult to define EU interests, and therefore predictability. (See Map 9 on Germany-France perception of security according to their respective White books).

Better EU-Russia "Entente", has to be worked on in a way that simultaneously rebuilds trust between France and Germany. Both should agree on a new reset with Russia in a way that France will become less suspicious of a German-Russian alliance and Germany will be less suspicious of the building of traditional rear alliances to weaken its European dominance at the geopolitical centre of Europe. If those rivalries within the EU are ignored, EU- Russia relations might be instrumentalised to modify the balance of power within the EU. (See map 10: "Franco-German Great Game after German unification").

Brexit a risk or opportunity?

The Brexit has the effect of provoking disagreements within the EU, in particular between France and Germany, because their diverging views on the finality of EU were masked by the debates prior to the vote.

The Brexit will have irreversible consequences on the balance of power within the EU. The balancing role of the United Kingdom traditionally used by France in relations with Germany will be diminished after the Brexit.

In the French Gaullist doctrine, Russia is a factor of equilibrium in Europe and this role is likely to be reinforced after Brexit. Europe will find itself in a geopolitical situation similar to the period when de Gaulle was president of France: UK was not part of the European economic community and the Cold War context was causing deep European tensions. Today, Brexit is also concomitant of a "new Cold War" context. The situation today, will reinforce the shift of balance of power within the EU. It will reinforce the centrality of Germany and this, in turn, will raise France's desire to consider new options to slow down what the French perceive as the emergence of a "German EU". It will reinforce French politicians, influenced by the Gaullist doctrine, in their convictions to promote a better relation with Russia, in order to re-establish a better geopolitical balance in Europe, in the context of presidential elections.

The situation might offer new opportunities for France and Russia to renew and improve relations.  Therefore, Brexit can be seen as an opportunity for continental EU member states to push for the "Europe from Lisbon to Vladivostok" scenario in the longer term.

There is also a possible more dangerous scenario. As a result of Brexit, the UK will not be able to be USA's closest ally within the EU anymore. The reinforcement of NATO to rally Europeans behind an exclusive "Euro-Atlanticist" vision might be a likely option. The tool to push for this option is to make Russia a clear adversary. This dangerous scenario should be avoided because it will fragment Europe between the EU and Russia even more.

The survival of the EU is at stake which makes EU members more introverted. Brexit might be as important as the fall of the Berlin Wall but this time leading to regression of EU.

Brexit should be used as an opportunity to reform the European project and to make it closer to the citizens:

– it would mean less integration,  and a reformed project closer to an alliance of Nations

– the reinforcement of the option of a "Europe from Lisbon to Vladivostok" benefiting all European nations, including Russia. This scenario might become a reality when governments of EU member states start distancing themselves from the current "state of denial" regarding BREXIT and its consequences.

Annex 2  

Geopolitical diagnosis and identification of common interests  

Today, the danger lies in the spreading of a spiralling crisis under the "sleepwalker" syndrome[vii], leading to confrontation caused by the absence of geopolitical knowledge.

EU-Russia relations cannot be separated from global geopolitical trends. A more common diagnosis of the world evolution is required, in order to guide political decisions of both partners, to overcome their differences, identify common interests, and adopt common strategies.

Let's advance a few hypotheses: .

The geopolitical diagnosis:

Control of territory is a factor of power. It is a constant in international relations. Many analyses concentrate on the distinction between the actors in a conflict, classifying them as democratic or non-democratic states, whereas the legal point of view considers the respect or otherwise of international law. These approaches are often coloured by ideology and mask the real issues.

An analysis of the conflict from a geopolitical angle is more revealing.

The trend to a multipolar world signifies a redistribution of power between states in the form of a geographic dispersion accompanied by an ‘unfreezing’ of the existing order. A trend is growing of rivalries between states for the control of territories[viii] useful for their political and economic power, their security value and the significance of their identities. The geographical definition of the areas of influence of the various competing powers, the resolution of boundary disputes between states, and the changes consequent on their disintegration, are all decided by adjustment between the contradictory geopolitical designs of the various actors. The new balances are achieved, either by conflict, that is, by warlike means, or in peaceful ways by negotiation.

In a multicentric world, the doctrine of balance of forces is one way to make an adjustment of the geopolitical ambitions of the various actors, oscillating between rivalry and cooperation. A negotiated balance of power is a prerequisite for the implementation of cooperation regimes intended at overcoming differences of values and visions. Since the civilisational factor is, in the current world, emerging as an important factor and vector of both cooperation and rivalry for the future, the identification of common civilisational values and visions is an important component.

Identifying contradictory or overlapping geopolitical representations

The main contradiction between the European Union nations and Russia, but also between EU nations themselves, lies in the different "geopolitical representations" of the world according to their geographical position and historical experience.

The way, in which, each nation perceives its role at European and global scales tend to run parallel. These diverging perceptions are based on facts like geography, causing different geographical priorities, but also on the different perception of their interests derived from historical experience and reciprocal misconceptions. Therefore, geography and history are the main factors to understand a crisis.

The “geopolitical representations” of nations and states have to be highlighted in their diversity and contradictions. "Geopolitical representations"[ix] are more or less precise or vague perceptions mixing reality (geography) and subjectivity (ideology, historical and civilisational representations). These representations can be put on a map and, as an implicit or explicit model of reference, they participate in the strategies of the actors (when facing a crisis or reaching a geopolitical objective).

How can these different views become less confrontational? The various Transatlantic, Mediterranean/African and Eurasian geopolitical orientations are the source of centrifugal forces between Russia and EU member states. The geopolitical method can help;  the step of "mapping'' overlapping, antagonistic or similar geopolitical projects is essential to reveal both obstacles and common objectives.

After a clinical geopolitical diagnosis, it would be possible to proceed to the identification of common interests in an innovative way.

Rediscover the relevance of territorial mastery, geopolitical strategy and balance of power doctrine for the EU in the 21 st century

In the twenty-first century, in order to navigate in a world in a state of flux, a geopolitical strategy that is conceived as a spatio-temporal whole and is functioning as a means of balancing others’ power, is required. This is because the mastery of territory and time in the service of a political objective is a decisive advantage and a central element of sovereignty. The mastery depends on the capacity of appreciation of others’ space and time constraints.

There can be no success or results in multilateral forum negotiations without prior "negotiated multipolarity", which means an "agreed balance of power". Balance doctrine also means the recognition of other alliances (European Union recognising the value of the Eurasian project as a stabilising factor)

Is it enough for the European Union (EU) to adopt the position of ‘empire of standards’, in anticipation of a potentially growing weight of the legal factor[x] in international relations, in the face of geopolitical doctrines of other political entities? Certainly not!

Questions of territory, geographical priorities and frontiers do not prominently feature in European negotiations, as they are sensitive and generate conflict. Various obstacles to a European geopolitical approach persist:

. territorial blindness resulting from the almost overwhelming importance accorded to the legal, economic[xi] and political aspects of analyses, which makes it difficult to consider questions of territory and sovereignty ;

. an asymmetric perception of threats to and interests of the member states as a function of their geographic position and history ;

. a world-view inherited from the Cold War, and a lack of thought and public debate at the politico-strategic level. In order to play a role on the international scene the EU must reposition itself with respect to the outside world.

A better appreciation of geopolitical issues would be doubly useful for the EU in its analysis and comprehension of the territorial issues which concern it in the twenty first century, but also for the development of a power strategy based on the control of territory and subordinated to the objective of a ‘political Europe’[xii]. The EU would be involved in the world balance and obtain the status of an autonomous geopolitical actor.

The consequence for EU defining its own geopolitical doctrine

The European project needs to be adapted according to the changing geopolitical environment. After the Brexit and its consequences, the EU should focus more on "Realpolitik" principles since it will be less and less in a position to impose its paradigm based on the "interdependence theory" and the exportation of its own norms. The European project should rather be understood as a wide European security architecture, such as the "Westphalian peace" or "Congress of Vienna".

To be a serious political player in a rapidly changing world, the European Union needs to devise a geopolitical strategy based on its territorial interests. This means defining its boundaries, geographical priorities and alliances, promoting its civilisational characteristics, both organic and ideological (values), that will prevail within these boundaries, to have more weight in the world order.

The transformation of the EU into a more autonomous geopolitical actor involves its insertion into the system of world balance. Its vision must correspond to its geographical extent and be clearly identifiable by other geopolitical centres. This necessity for more autonomy is recognized in the new EU global strategy.    The European project could also be revived as a more "political" project [xiii]   of continental scale in two directions:

A geopolitical strategy should follow from EU’s geographical characteristics.

1- First, a better balance :

According to its geographical position, the EU should maintain a geopolitical balance between the Euro-Atlantic, the Eurasian, the Euro-Mediterranean and African and the Euro-Arctic geopolitical spaces. This means, that it is necessary for the EU to have more balance between USA and Russia. In a similar way, Russia also has to balance its own relations according to its different geographies between Eurasian-European and Atlantic, Eurasian-Arctic, Eurasian-Eastern Asian, and Eurasian-Mediterranean and African spaces (see map Russia).

2- The promotion of a pan-European civilisational model

If both EU and Russia approach the today highly divisive question of values, the focus should be on what they have in common. The common characteristics of the European civilisation should be examined and promoted, at a time of the clear emergence of a violent political Islam, carrying rival representations. Russia and EU nations have a clear common interest to contain and fight radical and political Islam on external theatres (Middle East, South West Asia and Africa) and internal theatres (terrorism, Islamist proselytism, demography).         

Annexes – Maps – «Im Raume lesen wir die Zeit» ("In the Space We Can Read the Time") Friedrich Ratzel