Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov set off a firestorm during a Feb. 12 interview with Russian television journalist Vladimir Solovyov when he indicated that Russia was prepared to split from the European Union if the EU insists on imposing sanctions on Russia that cause economic damage. Lavrov said that because of the sanctions imposed in Russia over the conflict in Ukraine and the Crimea vote to join Russia, “we have realized that we must rely only on ourselves. No, we do not want to self-isolate. We want to take advantage of the international division of labor, but if someone is saying that there will be competition, but we will be `cut off’ here, here and also there.... As [German Foreign Minister] Maas put it, they will impose sanctions just to make sure our actions don’t go unnoticed. What kind of a reliable partner are you then?”
When Solovyov asked him “Are we heading for a breach with the EU?” Lavrov replied: “We believe we would be ready for this. We are neighbors. Speaking collectively, they are our largest trade and investment partner. Many EU companies operate here; there are hundreds or even thousands of joint ventures. When a business benefits both sides, we will continue. I am sure that we have become fully self-sufficient in the defense sphere. We must also attain the same position in the economy to be able to act accordingly if we see again (we have seen this more than once) that sanctions are imposed in a sphere where they can create risks for our economy, including in the most sensitive areas such as the supply of component parts. We don’t want to be isolated from the world, but we must be prepared for this. If you want peace, prepare for war.”
