Russian and the European Union. Is Russia an integral part of Europe?

Russian and the European Union
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Saying that Russia is an integral part of the European Union may be more of a stretch, but in reality this may change rather fast. Russia does not see itself as part of the modern Europe, to form the European space between Brest and Vladivostok; it has curved its own niche, instead. The European model has been having some major shifts in strength and stability and Russia would have to take up projects from Europe with a pinch of salt. Europe is headed for some very tough economic times ahead. With the egoism experienced between the EU nations, where most of the nations are showing they only care about their wellness, Russian is even more unlikely to join forces.
Following the gas crisis and the conflict experienced in Georgia, the relation between the two has only worsened. There has been arising in the level of nationalism as well as the fact that the level of EU’s understanding towards Russia is very low. EU still considers Russia’s policies to be unorthodox, and does not recognize how far the country has risen in the ranks. Factors like the inc...