GENEVA, November 24. /TASS/. The European Parliament’s decision to adopt a resolution declaring Russia as a "state sponsor of terrorism" makes no sense either politically or legally, the Swiss daily Neue Zuercher Zeitung's columnist said on Wednesday.
"Emotionally, this decision can be understood, but it entails no legal consequences. Moreover, it is politically meaningless," columnist Daniel Steinvorth believes. In his opinion, the resolution the EP adopted on Wednesday "looks powerful", but in reality, it is such "only verbally."
The author draws attention to the fact that the decision of the EP "is not binding" for either the European Commission or the countries of the European Union. The European deputies’ demand for reducing official contacts with Russia to an "absolute minimum" has been "met long ago," taking into account the expulsion of Russian diplomats from the EU countries after the start of a special military operation in Ukraine, the columnist noted.
Steinvorth recalls that the United States, unlike the EU, does not consider Russia a sponsor of terrorism, because it is well aware that "at some point the West will inevitably have to sit down again at the negotiating table with Russia," while "terrorists are not to be negotiated with."
Strasbourg "prefers not want to wait for this moment and hurries to attach labels instead," the observer laments.
The European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday adopted a resolution in which Russia is referred to as a "country sponsoring terrorism." The text of this document was uploaded to the website of this advisory body. The adopted resolution "recognizes Russia as a sponsor of terrorism and a state that "uses means of terrorism." The EP resolutions have no legal force and are advisory in nature, however, they are widely used in the EU’s media and political environment of the EU to promote and disseminate specific political viewpoints.