The EU-Russia Expert Network met for the 14th
time on 14 September. This was the third meeting of the EU-Russia expert network on foreign
policy (EUREN) devoted to the EUREN scenario process — and the second meeting that took place
online because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the interruption of air travel between Russia and
the European Union.
Markus Ederer, Ambassador of the European Union to Russia, opened the
discussion. Igor Ivanov, former Minister of foreign affairs of Russia and president of RIAC,
welcomed the participants via video message.
The EUREN scenario process started in
February 2020. It resulted in four scenarios: "Cold partnership", "Descending into anarchy", "On
the brink of war", and "Community of values". During the meeting, the experts discussed the
plausibility and consistency of the scenarios as well as the main conclusions from the process
with official representatives from the EU and Russia. The EUREN Report on "Alternative Futures
of EU-Russia relations in 2030" will be published in October.
The EUREN was initiated by
the Delegation of the European Union to the Russian Federation and the Russian International
Affairs Council. It is a platform for dialogue between foreign policy experts and think tanks
from EU member states and Russia. They exchange views on relevant issues and formulate policy
recommendations to be presented to decision-makers of both the EU and Russia.