Europe’s policy allows it to be ‘influential player’ in relation to Russia, China

Europe’s overall policy allows it to be an “influential player,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Thursday ahead of the informal EU meeting in France.

“Strengthening Europe’s role in the world requires more than managing current crises, it also requires long-term strategies and planning. It is for this reason that we are working within the EU on the so-called ‘strategic compass’, which we will discuss in detail with defense ministers today,” the minister said in a statement. This strategic compass aims to show the EU and its member states a clear direction for future security policy. In relation to autocratic states, such as Russia and China, in particular, it is important: if Europe follows a common course and acts as a whole, it is a heavyweight, and if it acts without unity, then it fights in its own weight category,” she added.

Baerbock also said that it is planned to sum up the interim results of this week’s negotiations with Russia during the informal summit of EU foreign ministers.