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France Muscles Way Into Georgia Envoy Post

September 15, 2008
By Ahto Lobjakas

EU foreign ministers have agreed to send a new top envoy to Georgia in a move that could signal crumbling support for a tougher line in response to Russia's recent actions in the South Caucasus.

The move comes as the bloc's members struggle to find unity amid sharp disagreements over how to redefine the bloc's relationship with Moscow in the wake of the Russia-Georgia war.

Ministers passed responsibilities from Swedish diplomat Peter Semneby, who has served as the bloc's special representative to the South Caucasus for more than two years, to Frenchman Pierre Morel, who has been envoy to Central Asia and becomes the EU's special representative for the Georgia crisis.

Advocates of a harder line to counter Russia's assertiveness in Georgia have been dubbed the "Polish-Swedish axis," a group that broadly includes postcommunist members and Britain, among others. France, which was applying the pressure to replace Semneby, and Germany have appeared more protective of relations with Moscow.

Morel said he was "honored [by] this entire measure and the high difficulty of the mission -- the very [tight deadlines], the demanding tasks" of the new post.

"It's quite a strong challenge, but I think it's in line [with] what the EU has been trying to do, to restore things in the region," he added.

Semneby will lose all or part of his mandate in Georgia -- at least for the duration of the conflict. The precise division of responsibilities will be hammered out in the coming weeks, as will be the question of whether Morel will carry on in his Central Asian role.

Those seeking a tougher line have advocated moves to bring Ukraine and other ex-Soviet republics closer to the EU and reduce energy dependence on Moscow.

Paris has long been a proponent of a "balance-of-power" approach to Russia -- openly described as such by Prime Minister Francois Fillon in November 2007 -- that recognizes that Moscow has privileged interests in its immediate vicinity.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, the subject of Fillon's comments at the time, returned the compliment in an interview in the September 15 issue of the French daily "Le Figaro," in which he says Russia has a "privileged" relationship with France. Putin also says it is no accident that Moscow has allowed French companies to develop Russia's hydrocarbon resources, noting that Total has a 25 percent stake in the massive Shtokman field.

Morel has consistently advocated a nonconfrontational approach to Russia. His critics accuse him of taking an overly positive view of Uzbekistan, in particular, a country subject to a largely suspended EU sanctions regime that will come up for review in October.

The EU's "special representatives" fulfill a far-reaching function, pointing the way for policies rather than necessarily shaping their specifics.

The replacement came despite a vigorous rearguard action by Sweden and was criticized sharply by Britain, Poland, and the Baltic members in the run-up to the meeting.

France is in the thick of its six-month EU Presidency, which has given it a privileged position in managing the bloc's response to the Russia-Georgia crisis.

Sarkozy has staked his personal reputation in the handling of EU response, and Morel's appointment appears to represent an attempt by Paris to ensure a degree of future control over the situation after it turns the EU Presidency over to the Czech Republic in January.

The EU infighting comes as Russia and the United States continue to wrestle for advantage.

In an article published in the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" on the second day of his two-day visit to Georgia's breakaway republics, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the EU as a "guarantor" of the status quo in Georgia -- which in Moscow's view includes the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and the indefinite presence of thousands of Russian troops.

In the article, Lavrov glosses over Georgia and its future and instead focuses on Ukraine and the potential implications for its bid for a NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP). He warns that attempts to set Ukraine up as a "buffer zone" between Russia and the West could "devalue" the country.

Lavrov also broadens Russia's strategic horizons, saying NATO's new member states are trying to play the West against Russia in a bid to "offload the responsibility for their own domestic and foreign policy developments onto their 'older' allies."

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/France_Georgia_Envoy_Post/1200182.html

Copyright (c) 2008. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.