Sir Malcolm Rifkind: Russia is not a superpower

13 April 2018, 12:46

Speaking about the possibility of a new Cold War, one should not forget that, unlike the USSR, Russia is not a superpower. Such an opinion was expressed by Sir Malcolm Rifkind, the Secretary of State of Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, United Kingdom (1995-1997) during the 11th Kyiv Security Forum organized by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Open Ukraine Foundation.

"We should not forget that the Cold War was not just a contradiction between the USSR and the West. It was a great ideological clash between communism and capitalism, communism and democracy, and that these values would determine the future of the world. And at that time the USSR was a superpower, and the USA was another superpower. Today, Russia is a very large country, a very important country. But this is not a superpower. If someone has to be so called - it's China, which took the place of Russia. And this will not change soon," he believes.

At the same time, Rifkind does not see the possibility of a new Cold War in the near future.

"Let's start with the fact that in some respects the situation is safer today than at that time, although in one it is much worse," he said.

Rifkind stressed that since the Cold War, the nuclear potentials of the countries have significantly decreased. However, he noted that in those days there was no armed confrontation in Europe, unlike what is happening in Ukraine.

For reference:

The annual international event Kyiv Security Forum was launched by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Foundation Open Ukraine in 2007 as a platform for high-level discussions on the current issues in Europe and the Black Sea region. The Forum aims at increasing security cooperation between the EU and the Black Sea region, raising awareness about regional developments among key regional players, promoting the role of independent and non-governmental actors in setting the security agenda in Europe.

The event is being held with the support of NATO Information and Documentation Center in Ukraine, the German Marshall Fund, The Victor Pinchuk Foundation, The Royal Institute of International Relations, Chatham House (UK), and The Regional Representative Office of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation in Ukraine.

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Sir Malcolm Rifkind: Russia is not a superpower

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