MOSCOW. (Tatyana Stanovaya, a senior analyst at the Center for Political Technologies, for RIA Novosti.)

On August 27-29, Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, will host a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), where Russia is to present a new cooperation agenda.

This must be done because the attractiveness of the CIS is falling, while the coalition activity of "color regimes" is growing, with the West providing ready assistance.

In particular, the leaders of Ukraine and Georgia plan to create a Democratic Choice Commonwealth of the Baltic, Black Sea and Caspian states, which Poland and Lithuania might join.

Russia might revise its policy regarding the CIS countries, said a source in the administration of the Russian president. "Russia is not satisfied with a situation when it subsidizes the economy of several countries by supplying them with energy at a loss to itself but the people in the said countries remain hungry. Such situations create the grounds for 'orange revolutions'," the source said.

Needless to say, such statements are directed above all to Ukraine (though not only Ukraine). Before the "orange revolution" there, Russia's policy regarding the CIS countries rested on economic privileges in return for political loyalty. It delivered cheap gas to Ukraine, which in return agreed to join the Common Economic Space, which is politically important for Russia.

It was a dual-direction formula: Ukraine accepted the Russian structure for the national gas consortium, while Russia supported the election campaign of Viktor Yanukovich.

But the "economy in exchange for politics" formula became ineffective after the "orange revolution." Ukraine no longer needs Russia's political support because it now has the political support of the West, though it hopes that Russia will not suspend its economic privileges.

Ukraine's interest in Russia has become more lop-sided. It wants a free trade regime in the Common Economic Space but is against creating the customs union, which would benefit Russia. Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko said the other day that his country would not withdraw from the CES but would develop relations within this project only in the sectors that do not contradict European integration.

Ukraine is making its choice in favor of the West not only economically but also politically, and the latter choice is acquiring anti-Russian elements. The Democratic Choice Commonwealth initiated by Yushchenko and Saakashvili is assuming the role of a judge as regards democratic standards in other countries.

In Russia's system of priorities, sovereignty stands above democracy, while Ukraine and Georgia have opted for the domination of democracy, which will pave the way to ideological confrontation between Russia and the "color regimes."

Therefore, Ukraine is losing the status of Russia's political ally, which brings to mind the logical question: why should Russia remain its financial and economic donor then?

Ukraine and Russia are going to discuss economic integration at the CIS summit in Kazan. As is known, Ukraine will put forward about 65 initiatives on the CES, trying to feign a will for integration with Russia. Russia is not ready to reform the CES according to Ukraine's scenario and is drafting a thick package of documents, which Ukraine is regarding skeptically.

The deadlock has encouraged Russia to offer Ukraine two variants of cooperation: either the restoration of the old "politics in exchange for economy" formula (Ukraine makes the political decision to join the CES in accordance with the Russian scenario, while Russia prolongs privileged energy deliveries), or the transition to market relations with Russia, which will not benefit the Ukrainian economy.

The source in the presidential administration said exactly this: Ukraine has a few days left to think before the Kazan summit.