Opening Speech by Dr Anna Wieslander, Director for Northern Europe at the Atlantic Council, Sweden, on 14 September in Potsdam
“There is a belief that a wait-and-see-how-it-goes approach to Russia could be beneficial for a peaceful path ahead,” said Anna Wieslander in her opening speech at the M100 Sanssouci Colloquium last Thursday. “Such a conviction is based on considerations such as: Is there really a danger in hoping for the best, signalling a desire for dialogue and détente, regardless of Russia’s behaviour? Isn’t this simply responsible leadership, an attempt to avoid escalating the conflict, to open up to communication and mutual understanding and to scale back military aspects?
Unfortunately, no. In fact, inaction and hesitation could accelerate aggressive behaviour. In this regard, too, the answer to the question lies in recognising Russia as a systemic threat. Misperceptions or misjudgements can have major repercussions, as the Munich Agreement of 1938 taught us.”
Europe must “develop a long-term strategy beyond the immediate situation. Europe needs to realize that yes, Russia will geographically always be at the border of Europe, but no, it is not inevitably a part of Europe or necessarily included in our security order. Europe should instead balance against Russia.”
You can read and watch Anna Wieslander’s full speech here.
