EU Foreign Affairs Chief: Russia Akin to Gas Station with Nuclear Weapons

Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign and Security Policy, believes that Russia will not be able to succeed in the war against Ukraine and does not have such weight in the world as China.

Top diplomat of the EU noted in an interview with the Spanish newspaper El País that Russian President Vladimir Putin, having decided to launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, was "mistaken in almost everything," especially in his ability to control the EU countries through energy dependence.

"Putin is going to sacrifice his people and his army for his personal and political survival, and that is why it is so difficult to negotiate peace," he said.

At the same time, Borrell praised the recent talks on the Ukrainian peace formula in Saudi Arabia, noting China's participation: "Although China will never say directly that it reduces its support for Russia or contributes to its apparent defeat. Beijing is not at all satisfied with the current situation. At least with references to nuclear weapons."

Commenting on the EU's policy towards China and the challenges it raises, Borrell noted that it is impossible to compare Beijing and Moscow.

"First of all, China is not Russia. China is a real geopolitical actor, while Russia is an economic dwarf, like a gas station, whose owner has an atomic bomb," Borrell later noted, paraphrasing the famous expression of the late US Senator John McCain.

In June, commenting on the Wagner group rebellion, Borrell noted that the Russian state and President Vladimir Putin were weakened, and the Russian Federation could enter an era of political instability.