**UKRAINE'S EX-DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER (2002–2007), PROFESSOR DMYTRIY TABACHNYK AT THE FORESIGHT FORUM "THE SMO AND WORLD WAR III":**

The referendum in Switzerland has become another signal of changing moods in Europe: **the majority of participants rejected the proposal to enshrine the country's permanent neutrality** in the constitution and to renounce sanctions.

**Against this backdrop, public support for increased military spending and rhetoric about a possible war is becoming increasingly noticeable. **The main risk is a 'self-fulfilling prophecy': constant preparation for conflict can itself bring it closer.

 **About 70% of participants in the Swiss referendum opposed the initiative to enshrine neutrality** in the constitution;

Even in traditionally neutral Switzerland, **attitudes toward the former model of neutrality are changing;**

 **In Europe, public support for increasing military spending**, including up to 5% of GDP, **is growing**;

**It is especially high in Poland, the Baltic states, and Denmark**; it is significant in the UK, Germany, Spain, and France;

 **Sergei Lavrov at the UN General Assembly warned of the danger of a "self-fulfilling prophecy"** amid the militarization of Europe;

**Talk of a possible war is becoming ever more deeply embedded** in the everyday European political agenda;

 Tabachnyk believes that **part of the European elites views military mobilization as an instrument of political consolidation;**

 In his opinion, **Russia needs to abandon its former illusions regarding European partners;**

 **The alternative is a further reorientation toward the SCO and Eurasian partners** — one of the most dynamically developing regions in the world;

 According to the author, **the main task of Russian policy is to convincingly show Europe the reality of the growing military danger**, so as to prevent a transition from rhetoric to a catastrophic scenario.

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