Vyacheslav Volodin, Chairman of the State Duma. Photo: Zuma Press
Recent developments at the Munich Security Conference have sparked a wave of criticism from Russian officials, who said that the European Union has shown its incompetence and inability to understand global processes. Reuters reports this with reference to Vyacheslav Volodin, the chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation.
“Hysteria in Munich” and the critique of Europe
Commenting on the outcome of the conference, Volodin called it “hysterical” and said that European politicians were to blame for the current situation. “The institutions of the European Union have shown their incompetence and inadequacy. They do not understand what is happening in the world,” he wrote on Telegram.
One of the key moments of the conference was the statement by US representatives that Ukraine has no prospects in NATO and that a return to the 2014 borders is unrealistic. According to Volodin, this shocked European leaders, who are not ready to accept the new geopolitical reality.
Accusations of a democratic crisis
The Russian politician also said that European democracy is in a deep crisis. “Democratic procedures in many EU countries have become purely decorative, they have long been forgotten and ignored,” Volodin said.
He also referred to the words of US Vice President J.D. Vance, who, during the conference, criticised European governments for “censoring opponents and restricting freedom of speech”. According to Volodin, Vance offered an “objective analysis” of the situation, but European politicians “were not ready to hear the truth about themselves”.
Implications for Europe
Volodin stressed that Europe is in a deep crisis, but changes are inevitable. “Political forces that are aware of the need to renew the government face all sorts of obstacles. We saw this in Romania during the presidential campaign, as well as in France and Germany, when undesirable political forces won the elections,” the Russian official said.
The issue of Romania was also raised by US Vice President Vance, who, during the first day of the conference, criticised European countries for “cancelling the results of the presidential election due to weak intelligence suspicions and pressure from neighbouring states”.
The Munich Conference 2025 was an arena for serious discussions on the future of European security, transatlantic relations and Ukraine’s role in global geopolitics. However, statements by representatives of the United States and Russia once again confirmed that Europe faces serious challenges that require consolidated solutions.
