THE CORFU PROCESS – AN OPPORTUNITY TO ESTABLISH A NEW SECURITY ARRANGEMENT IN EUROPE OR JUST ANOTHER STALEMATE?
THE CORFU PROCESS – AN OPPORTUNITY TO ESTABLISH A NEW SECURITY ARRANGEMENT IN EUROPE OR JUST ANOTHER STALEMATE?

Summary/Abstract: It is generally agreed that the discussion on the new security arrangement in the Euro-Atlantic and Euro-Asian space was launched by the speech of President Medvedev delivered in Berlin in June 2008.1 In the speech he proposed that a European summit be called to approve a mandate for talks on a legally binding European Security Treaty (EST). The objective of such an agreement would be to guarantee a real unification of Europe without any dividing lines. Medvedev’s initiative needs to be seen in a larger sense as another form of security concept the ultimate goal of which is to achieve ‘equal interaction between Russia, the EU and the US’ in the new era of security developments in Europe. Moscow’s strategic objective is to minimize NATO’s influence and at the same time to legitimize Russia’s dominant position within the post-Soviet space. This strategy also includes the weakening of the OSCE and its ability to respond to what is referred to as ‘interference in internal affairs’ in the context of the frozen conflicts, violation of commitments in the field of human rights and other deficits of democracy in Russia herself.

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