Star-Investor George Soros Warns of E.U. Break-Up Over Russian Role in Ukraine
DUSSELDORF, Germany, November 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
George Soros, one of the world's richest men and a longtime defender of central European democracy, warned that the European Union, a mainstay of post-war stability, could dissolve and unravel if the 28-country bloc fails to agree on a common response to Russia's military aggression in the Ukraine.
Speaking on Tuesday in Düsseldorf, Germany, at a dinner sponsored by Handelsblatt, the German financial newspaper, Mr. Soros, an 84-year-old Hungarian-American, said E.U. discord over the bloc's response to Russia threatens the alliance of nations stretching from Ireland to Estonia.
Russia this year seized the Crimean peninsula from the Ukraine and is now arming and supporting a separatist movement in the eastern part of the country, which has been met with economic sanctions so far from the United States and the European Union.
The sanctions have hurt Russian and European trade, and have led to a slowdown of economic growth on the Continent. In Germany, some business and political leaders are now calling on political leaders to abandon the E.U. sanctions, saying Russia is a part of Europe and must also be a part of a solution to the military crisis. In other parts of Europe, the call is growing for a softer line with Russia.
Mr. Soros, in his remarks, made clear that Europe needed to take a tougher line. His remarks were published on Wednesday in Handelsblatt Global Edition, the English-language edition of Germany's leading financial newspaper, Handelsblatt.
"I think the real question is whether the European Union will break up over Russia," Mr. Soros told 400 people at a dinner held at K21-Ständehaus, a Düsseldorf museum, by the German financial publishing group. "The E.U. is under threat from Russia. Here is Russia, not an attractive country. The E.U. is broken, and it is not functioning."
Mr. Soros, a legendary investor and hedge fund manager whom Forbes estimates is worth $24 billion, said that an E.U. breakup could lead to a breakup of the euro single currency zone, which includes 18 E.U. countries, including Germany.
In an interview with Gabor Steingart, the Handelsblatt publisher and the son of a Hungarian emigrant to Germany, Mr. Soros urged Europeans to stand together against Russia, which he said is bent on reasserting its military hegemony over parts of the Continent.
"Wake up Europe," said Mr. Soros, who had just returned from a visit to the Ukraine. "There is now an alternative to the European Union, a different way to run a state through use of force. I'm talking about (Vladimir) Putin's Russia. The reason he is making headway is because of the failure of the E.U."
Handelsblatt Global Edition is the English-language edition of Handelsblatt, Germany's leading finance daily. The digital-only collection of news, analysis and video from Europe's largest economy is available at https://global.handelsblatt.com/ . Handelsblatt Global Edition is published at 6 a.m. EST in New York, at noon in Berlin. The newspaper is produced by a bilingual staff of 25 journalists in Germany and the United States. Those interested can register at https://global-auth.handelsblatt.com/register and test the product for free for two weeks. The price for a one-year subscription then costs 149.99 euros. Students can read the Global Edition for a special price of 74.99 euros per year.
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