EU seeks unity on Russia via high-speed diplomacy

The chilled champagne flowed before midday on a high-speed train that whisked the cream of Europe's diplomats to a two-day brainstorming session in the south of France.

But it was Russia, not the alcoholic fizz, that promised to give the two dozen European foreign ministers headaches.

France, host of the Friday-Saturday meeting, set aside a chunk of time for the ministers to mull the future of Europe's relations with Russia - whose oil and gas fire European cars and homes, but whose tanks and troops in Georgia have aroused fears the Russian bear of Soviet times is back with a vengeance.

For European decision-makers facing tough choices - go soft with Russia or take a tougher stance - the veal on the menu seemed especially apt: "cooked two different ways," both roasted and slowly done.

Sanctions against Russia? How to make the Kremlin respect a cease-fire plan with Georgia? There was much for the ministers to chew on over lunch as the bucolic French countryside blurred past their windows at several hundred miles an hour.

For the moment, Europe is standing more or less together, with a softly-softly approach of tough words, not tough sanctions. No one wants a return to the Cold War that divided the continent after World War II.

Europe and the United States also need Russian help as they try to freeze Iran's nuclear program, suspected of being used to build bombs. So for now, the European Union is pushing Russia to withdraw troops from positions in Georgia, but also trying not to burn bridges with the Kremlin.

The question is how long and whether the united European front can last, especially if Russia hangs tough. And there's also the fear that appeasement could simply invite Russia into other places that an increasingly assertive Moscow regards as its sphere of influence, like Ukraine, the Baltic states or Moldova.

EU countries that used to be behind the Iron Curtain, with vivid memories of Soviet-era domination, have held out for a tougher line.

Lithuania, Poland and the Czech Republic have, said one European diplomat, floated the idea of sanctions against companies and individuals who invest in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the two breakaway regions of Georgia that are the flashpoints of the current crisis with Russia.

So far, the diplomat said, the sanctions route has found no other takers, but it shows how thinking differs in European capitals. The diplomat spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing the EU's internal machinations.

Britain, too, has taken a tougher line. Its relations with Russia have been strained since the 2006 murder of Kremlin critic Alexander Litvinenko in London.

In an ideal European world, the continent's diplomacy would be as quick and effective as the Train a Grande Vitesse, or TGV train, that zoomed the foreign ministers from Paris to Avignon in the south in under three hours.

Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos couldn't resist comparison as he boarded, talking of a "Europe searching for high speed, and high speed in the world."

But the reality is far more plodding. Getting the EU's 27 member nations to act in concert is a process of give-and-take with an inordinate amount of meetings, summits, working groups, working papers, and get-togethers like the one in Avignon.

The idea behind the train trip, French officials said, was that the journey would allow the ministers to meet and chat about issues informally before they got down to business. Germany's minister missed the ride and the Danish minister couldn't make the trip because he was sick, French officials said.

While aides poured over briefing papers and newspapers in an array of European languages, hostesses served up salmon slivers on a stick with the champagne, as the cooks readied lunch - which was rounded off with orange ice cream.

Once in Avignon, the foreign ministers urged an international probe into who triggered the conflict between Georgia and Russia, but didn't decide anything deeper on the matter. Talks were to continue Saturday.