International Dialogue

Photo: Rogiro, CC-Licence

What is known as President Putin’s Munich Speech, delivered at the International Security Conference in February 2007, alarmed many politicians and observers in the West. It was probably less the speech’s content than its exultant tone that conveyed the message – Russia has made a powerful re-entry onto the world stage. The Kremlin feels itself to be strong enough again to see that the talk of a multi-polar world order is followed up by deeds, symbolic at first. During the war against Georgia, weapons joined the discussion. As President Medvedev said later: “Russia is a country that has to be reckoned with.”

The Heinrich Böll Foundation deals primarily with relations between Russia and the European Union, NATO, and the West in general. Alone due to its size and nuclear arsenal, Russia is an important actor in many international issues and crisis. There are often conflicts that would be impossible to resolve should Russia not cooperate, let alone with opposition on Russia’s part. The Heinrich Böll Foundation wants to contribute to opening a new discussion about Russia’s role in the world and its relationship with the West.

Jours-Fixes: Böll at Sakharov's

Monthly Jour-Fixe in cooperation with the Sakharov Center Moscow

Each month the country office of the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation in Russia organizes, cojointly with the Sakharov Museum and Public Center in Moscow, a Jour-Fixe on selected topical international issues and events. Speakers from Russia and abroad give an introduction into the subject matter, which will be the basis for a debate with the audience.

Venue: Conference room (2. floor), Sakharov Museum and Public Center , Semlanoy Val street 57/6

Free entrance, no registration necessary.

Follow this link for an overview of past Jours-Fixes.»»

“Examining the Turkish-Russian rapprochement”

Report

“Examining the Turkish-Russian rapprochement”

If the official line coming out of Turkey is to be believed, Turkish-Russian relations have never been better than they are today. Separating the official bluster from the facts is difficult, however, due to a lack of transparency on both sides. As a part of an event series on Turkish foreign policy, the Heinrich Boell Foundation Turkey has cooperated with the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Carnegie Center in Moscow to attempt to provide a critical survey.

Click here for the report “Examining the Turkish-Russian rapprochement” on the website of Heinrich Boell Foundation Turkey.

German-Russian Relations

On 21/22 November 2008 the German-Russian-Exchange, Heinrich-Böll-Foundation and the Evanglische Akademie Berlin the 13th edition of the "German-Russian Talks in Fall", that dealt with the topic "Approximation or Alieniation: The Influence of history politics on EU-Russia relations". Here you may find a conference report including the most relevant expert interventions as well as other information on this and other events.

EU-Russia Relations

EU EaP and Russia

On 25th of June 2009 the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation in Moscow, in conjunction with the Sakharov-Center, organized a round-table discussion entitled "EU Eastern Partnership and Russia". Speakers included: Marc Franco (European Commission in Russia), Andrew Wilson (European Council on Foreign Relations), Oleg Rybachuk (former vice-prime minister for European integration of Ukraine), Nadezhda Arbatova (IMEMO), Joscha Schmierer (publicist and former member of the cabinet of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Germany) and Fyodor Lukyanov (Editor in Chief “Russia in Global Politics”).

Please see this conference report (106Kb) for further details on this event.

The prospects for visa freedom in EU-Russia relations

- The amount of travel between Russia and the EU states is growing steadily and the cultural and economic ties are getting stronger, yet the visa regime has nevertheless remained in place. This report assesses the visa relations between Russia and the EU, and in so doing seeks to address two fundamental research questions which form the basis of the study: Why does the visa regime still exist between these two entities? and What are the obstacles preventing visa freedom?
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Russia’s Europe and Europe’s Russia – Perceptions and Policy

- On 1 July 2008 the Office of the Heinrich-Boell-Foundation in Moscow organized a round table discussion on EU-Russia relations. Central topic of the debate was ""Russia’s Europe and Europe’s Russia – Perceptions and Policy". Please see this conference report (Pdf, 71Kb) for more information.

Foreign and Security Policy

NATO-Russia Relations: Taking Stock

In the framework of the run-up to the 60th anniversary of NATO the Heinrich-Boell-Foundation in Moscow invited to a round table debate on Russia-NATO relations. More details on this event can be found in this conference report (Pdf, 92 Kb).

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