Rarely have the stakes been as high. The future of Western Europe and the Atlantic alliance is on the table. The opponent is an old one. The Russian bear has awaken. And, once again it's hungry.

The last time the West faced this bear its weapons were tanks and missiles -- something the Western alliance could supply. This time the bear's weapon is energy -- something the Western alliance can't supply. Naturally, this changed situation makes the West nervous. 

According to this report Read about it here, the EU's top three officials showed up at the important EU/Russia summit late. And, besides leaving defeated and totally humiliated, their High Representative, Javier Solana, acted disinterested and played the clown. In fact, he may even have been a bit drunk.

You know, I don't blame him. Solana once said he never asked a question of which he didn't know the answer. While the other EU officials were asking and almost begging Russia's Viadimir Putin for an open energy policy, Solana knew better. He already knew the answer would be no Read about it here.

How did Solana know? For one thing, the EU leaders had come to the summit in weakness. They didn't bring anything to the table the bear wanted. In fact, the report says:

Putin's next outburst came when he was asked about Russia's reliability as an energy supplier. “If our partners are expecting an exclusive, we have a question. What do we receive in return? What deposits? What pipelines? If you don't have that, and you don't have that, then what can you offer?” he declaimed. The EU leaders, with the exception of Solana, nodded somberly.

So, why did Solana play the clown? Perhaps he wanted people to notice something -- that he wasn't playing a part in this huge diplomatic blunder. You see, while the top three EU heads were in Russia, the other 22 EU heads were home watching. And, according to this report Read about it here, they were preparing for another meeting to discuss the future of the EU's stalled constitution.

If you recall, among other things, the EU's new constitution calls for a single, strong personality over the EU's foreign and security policy. 

Not the EU stooges.