Europe today is not playing the role it played in the twentieth century, member of the Russian Federation Council, the coordinator of the Eurasian dialogue Andrei Klimov said during the National Expert Forum "Ukraine-2013. Forecast", ForUm correspondent reports.
"I do not believe in the collapse of the European integration project. However, the EU enlargement is not expected in the near future as well. It has little possibilities to offer financial support to their countries, and even less - to other countries," MP said, adding that Russia may lend such assistance.
"Our gold and forex reserves can cover the total expenditure for 15 months. In general, the center of economic power is shifting to the Eurasian region. More than half the world GDP is already produced here," the expert said.
Commenting on the European integration aspirations of Ukraine, Klimov said that Moscow recognizes sovereign right of the neighbors to define their foreign policy, but added: "It is one thing to be agreeable neighbor. To be a full member of the EU is quite another thing".
