Fake: The British Parliament urged not to condemn Russia

On February 2, Russian media reported on the publication of a special report on the Committee on International Relations of the House of Communities of the British Parliament, dedicated to bilateral relations of Great Britain and Russia. The headings in official publications are the same type and full of optimism: “Russian newspaper” - “in the UK called not to condemn Russia”, RIA Novosti - “The British Parliament called on the government to start a dialogue with Russia”, “The British parliament called for the Foreign Ministry to start a dialogue with Russia”, the “British parliamentarians' website requires their government to activate the dialogue with their government with their government Russia. "

Many - the television program “Vesti”, “Komsomolskaya Pravda”, RIA Novosti, “Moscow Komsomolets” and others - also pay attention to the proposal contained in the report to appoint a special minister for relations with Russia. However, in fact, this is a mistake of translators (possibly unintentional). The English word minister, used in the report, is far from always translated into Russian as a “minister”. In the British Foreign office, the position of Minister corresponds to the Russian deputy minister. Thus, the meaning of the proposal is that the Minister of Foreign Affairs (which, by the way, is called not Minister at all in English, but Secretary of State) is a deputy, whose circle of responsibility would include relations with Russia.

The optimistic tone of the Russian press does not fully correspond to the content of the report, which is very critical of Russia. It calls for the activation of a bilateral dialogue, but with a characteristic reservation: a complete rejection of contacts with a nuclear power and a member of the UN Security Council is inappropriate, and the prospects for improving bilateral relations said: “When - and if it comes for this.” It is especially emphasized that it is necessary to invest additional funds in the development of analytical institutions that study the political system of Russia and the decision -making process.

The Parliamentary Committee approves the law on criminal finances recently adopted in the UK - an analogue of the American Act of Magnitsky - and calls for the application of personal sanctions provided by him against persons associated with the Putin regime.

Russian media write that the report indicates the unreasonableness of Russia's accusations of war crimes in Syria. In fact, the position of the British government, which made such accusations, is supported there, but it is noted that they must be maintained by the publication of evidence so as not to play in the hands of the Kremlin propaganda, which declares the preferences of the West.

One of the few pleasant moments for the Russian state in the report is that its authors do not recommend boycotting the 2018 World Cup. At the same time, it is stated that the decision to travel the British government delegation to the championship should be made based on the quality of the organization of the tournament and the adherence of Russia with honest wrestling.

The Insider offers a translation of a brief content of a report published on the British Parliament website.

The bilateral relations between the United Kingdom and Russia are in a state of the highest tension since the end of the Cold War. This is due to the fact that Russia and Great Britain fundamentally different approaches to recent history and the existing international order. The basis of British foreign policy is the support of an international order based on general principles, international law, self -determination of sovereign national states, human rights and freedom of expression of views. The experience of post -Soviet Russia and the obvious self -interest of its ruling elite caused such a foreign policy that to a greater or lesser extent denies and undermines the world order and principles on which it is based.

Nevertheless, the refusal to interact with the Russian state will not be a viable foreign policy for the United Kingdom, since Russia is a European state that has nuclear weapons, and a member of the UN Security Council. Great Britain can maintain contacts with the Russian state, not being applied to moral and legal legitimacy and without sacrifice its values ​​and standards. Such a dialogue can be quite unpleasant, but it will at least contribute to clarifying specific moments of consent and disagreement on issues such as fighting terrorism and creating a foundation for advancement to improve relations, when - and if - for this the time comes. To this end, we recommend sending more funds of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to increase analytical and political capabilities, as well as appoint a minister’s deputy with a more specific responsibility for relations with Russia.

The actions of Russia in Ukraine and Syria represent the two most urgent foreign policy problems for British-Russian relations. Ukraine must choose its own future. The United Kingdom and its allies support Ukraine in its desire for stability before the further Russian invasion and to create public, political and physical infrastructure, which will help further rapprochement with the West and allow Ukraine to deal with Russia on more equal conditions. Despite the fact that supporting the Western’s uniform position on sanctions related to Ukraine can become more difficult, unilateral individual sanctions provided for by the law on criminal finances will allow the government to more effectively hold Putin regime, which are responsible for glaring human rights violations.

British government officials accused Russia of war crimes in Syria, but did not publish evidence of supporting their statements. The Government is right when it accuses the Russian military of actions that potentially violate the humanistic norms enshrined in international law. At the same time, if the government continues to declare war crimes committed by Russia in Syria, not providing grounds for its accusations, it risks playing into the hands of the Kremlin, claiming that hostile and hypocritical Western powers apply unjust double standards for Russia.

There are healthy cultural ties between the peoples of Great Britain and Russia, despite the current political difficulties. Given this, the government should pay attention not only to Putin President and apply directly to Russians through mechanisms such as the exchange of students and supporting Russian small businesses in sectors not affected by sanctions. The strategy of direct contacts between people should make bridges between us and the next generation of Russian political and economic leaders and create a foundation for improving British-Russian relations in the future.