Russia is increasingly isolating itself on the international scene, to some degree even from China and India, as it continues to bomb civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, Deputy Foreign Minister Jaroslav Kurfürst told EURACTIV.cz in an interview.

“Russia also seems to be isolated by China and India, although ‘isolation’ may be too strong a word. However, these two countries do not want to identify with Russian aggression and are showing increasing discontent,” said Kurfürst in the interview.

This is the case even if China and some other countries can benefit geopolitically from the war in Ukraine, as it does not affect them directly, Kurfürst added.

“Perhaps it even gives them the position of some kind of ‘mediator’, although it is difficult to find a middle ground between normality and evil,” he said, adding that some countries can benefit from the war economically because Russia sells them its raw materials at more favourable prices.

Kurfürst also said that the war showed gaps in the military capacities of western countries, including the Czech Republic.

“If we look down to a more tactical level, we can see how hugely important a missile defence system is. This is one of the Czech Republic’s weaknesses, so in this respect, Russian aggression brings us another lesson. This is a capacity where we need to develop,” he explained.

According to Kurfürst, the demand for weapons in Europe will increase as the arms industry is part of the solution when it comes to strengthening resilience and defence.

(Ondřej Plevák | EURACTIV.cz)

Source