Spanish newspaper: Europe does not consider Russia an “enemy”

Russia-EU relations have not been smooth in recent years. Photo: Sputnik

According to the article, the incident in which a Spanish fighter jet launched a missile over Estonia near the Russian border, which could have led to a catastrophic conflict, became a pivotal moment for this decision.

Then European countries began to think whether it was worth allowing hundreds of NATO aircraft to fly near Russian borders, because it would cause an escalation, and whether it was time to stop seeing Moscow as an "enemy" and start seeing it as an ally.

According to Mr. Jarnos, the main cause of instability between NATO and Russia is because Washington always considers Moscow as the main threat to its security and expands the alliance to the east near the Russian border.

In addition, Eastern European countries have asked NATO to put pressure and strengthen border protection, citing the potential threat of “Russian aggression”. This perception of Russia has also permeated the rest of Europe and prevented them from developing good neighborly relations with Moscow.

But, as Mr Jarnos stresses, “strategies, alliances and threats are changing.” The main reason for this is that President Donald Trump has supported Britain’s exit from the EU, withdrawn from the Iran nuclear deal, and made the US an unreliable ally in the eyes of Europe.

In addition, the US leader has become closer to Russian President Vladimir Putin, causing concern in Europe. French President Emmanuel Macron was the first to publicly call for a review of the Cold War legacy and to ensure balance in Europe.

The journalist stressed that over the past year, Europe has made more progress in creating its own security system than it did 60 years ago. And one of the first results of this system will be to consider Russia "as a neighbor, partner, potential ally, and not an enemy."