The resolution, passed by 53 votes to 10, with 3 abstentions, called on EU member-states to “refrain from doing bilateral deals with Russia and step up their own collective efforts to withstand it, whilst retaining a return to cooperation with Russia as a long-term goal.”
The resolution also said that the EU must re-assess its relations with Russia and come up with a "soft-power contingency plan" to counter Russia’s "aggressive” and “expansionist policies” towards Ukraine.
The MEPs stated that by “annexing” Crimea, Russia had "profoundly damaged its relationship with the EU" and could no longer be considered a "strategic partner."
In March Brussels announced it was looking for experts to devise a strategy to counter Russia’s anti-Western propaganda. It also said it was mulling a Russian-language media outlet for exactly that purpose.
