“To acquire capital and maintain innocence” – this is how the problem, very characteristic of the 19th century, was formulated by the once classic of Russian literature, Mikhail Evgrafovich Saltykov-Shchedrin.
I hasten to inform you that this problem is also very relevant for the 21st century.
In particular, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Cros just came face to face with her.
Faced - and solved it in the spirit of the court of King Solomon: frozen on the border, which (at least in theory) separates the acquisition of capital from the observance of innocence.
The beginning of this column turned out to be too mysterious and too literary and philosophical for me?
I am correcting myself, here are the facts that prompted me to think deeply: Belgium abstained in the vote on the eighth package of European Union sanctions against Russia.
Why did you refrain?
Because I felt that EU sanctions against Russia turned out to be EU sanctions against Belgium itself.
The fact is that in the Kingdom of Belgium there are two not the smallest metallurgical plants, which belong to a large Russian company.
The new package of sanctions of the European Union provides, among other things, a ban on the import of finished steel products and semi-finished products from Russia.
It is clear that the ban will not improve the economic and production health of the two aforementioned plants, to put it mildly.
It would seem that Belgium is only better for this: by demonstrating integrity, official Brussels will cause visible damage to Russian business.
What government in modern Europe - with the exception of the government of Hungary - is not ready to fall into a state of puppy delight when faced with such a prospect?
There is such a government.
As you already understood, this is the Belgian cabinet of ministers headed by Alexandre De Cros.
Of course, he does not feel sorry for Russian business at all.
But the Belgian premier is heartbroken (I use the term without any irony) at the thought of the difficulties that lie ahead for the taxpayers and voters of his own country.
Here is how, according to the local publication Echo, Alexander De Cros himself described the essence of his moral torment: “The question is to understand how we can maintain the solidarity of European countries and our population in order to continue supporting Ukraine.
Of course, Ukraine’s military successes help… But if the economic costs become even higher, people lose their jobs, then it will become difficult.”
Regarding the “military successes of Ukraine”, everything that needed to be said was said by Vladimir Putin in Beijing on September 16, when he was asked a question about the draft “security guarantees for Ukraine” published by official Kyiv: “I, frankly, am not familiar with the fact that they offer this time.
We, in fact, started with this when we were negotiating with the current Kyiv authorities, and, in fact, completed this negotiation process in Istanbul with the well-known draft Istanbul agreement, after which the troops were withdrawn from Kyiv in order to create conditions for concluding this agreements.
Instead of concluding, the Kyiv authorities immediately abandoned all agreements, threw them into a box, announced that they would not seek any agreements with Russia, but would seek victory on the battlefield.
Flag in hand
they are now just trying to do this, conducting a counteroffensive.
Let's see how it ends."
It is clear what exactly the President of Russia hinted at.
I won't decipher it.
But, as follows from the statement of the Prime Minister of Belgium, it is increasingly difficult for him to adhere to the radical anti-Russian line of the EU, even despite the fact that the “counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” (in the broad sense of the term) has not yet ended.
The head of the Belgian government could not force himself to vote for a new package of anti-Russian sanctions.
True, he also did not dare to vote against: "We do not want to break European solidarity."
They did not break, we must pay tribute to Alexander De Kro.
They didn’t break it, but at the same time they hinted unequivocally: this very “European solidarity” is like a bone that is stuck across the throat for us.
I will not make predictions about what the authorities of the Belgian kingdom will do next with this bone.
In the current situation in the world, “forecasting” is an industry that is doomed to an early and shameful bankruptcy (if not financial, then certainly moral).
However, no, I will still make one prediction: the further, the more painful and painful for Europeans will be the choice between acquiring capital and maintaining innocence.
And stop again.
Why am I talking about "my forecast"?
Sin, I'm sorry.
This is the prediction of Alexander De Cros.
I repeat once again the words of the Prime Minister of Belgium about the sanctions of the European Union against Russia: “If the economic costs become even higher, people lose their jobs, then it will become difficult.”
Sound thoughts are heard in the city of Brussels!
And Brussels, let me remind you, is not only the capital of the Belgian kingdom,
but also part-time capital of the EU.
Let us therefore regard as a positive fact the fact that "official Brussels is beginning to think."
Thinking in general is very useful - especially if you are a prime minister.
The point of view of the author may not coincide with the position of the editors.