Merkel offers Russia free-trade agreement (with EU)

Germany would be prepared to negotiate a free-trade agreement between the European Union and Russia as a way out of the deadlocked Ukraine conflict, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday.

Merkel told the World Economic Forum in Davos that Germany was “ready” to open talks about “possibilities for cooperating in a collective trade area”, the Süddeutsche Zeitung reported.

But she said that a precondition for the plan, suggested by Russian President Vladimir Putin several years ago but ignored by European leaders, would be a comprehensive peace agreement in Ukraine. …

Is Fräulein von Ribbentrop Chancellor of the EU?

Does she have the authority to offer Czar Valdimir a free trade agreement with the EU?

She has been described enough times as “Queen of the European Union”, certainly. And ever since 2008, that is how she’s been acting. Notice that the other EU member states always fall in line with what Germany says.

The article leaves out a lot of context. It was Putin himself who three weeks ago suggested the EU should look eastward instead of going forward with TTIP / closer trans-atlantic cooperation.

James Stavridis: Putin hates the TTIP

In short: a feeble attempt at "divide and conquer".

If a complete pull-out of a united Ukraine (and Crimea) was part of the conditions, maybe

As the article says:

Merkel renewed her condemnation of Russia's annexing of the Crimea, saying that they had made economic sanctions against Russia unavoidable. "Unfortunately we're not yet there" at the point when sanctions could be removed, she said.

The whole thing is more or less a way of calling Putin's bluff: Well, yes, we'd love to, but unfortunately we can't.

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