Sergey Lavrov claims that the US has failed to secure Ukraine’s cooperation in the peace negotiations. He accuses European leaders of supporting military escalation.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with the state news agency RIA Novosti published on Sunday that he is ready to meet personally with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. However, he insisted on taking into account Russian interests when negotiating the war in Ukraine, TASR writes, according to a Sunday report by Politico magazine.
Lavrov said the bilateral summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump this summer in Alaska should remain the basis for a potential deal to end the war in Ukraine. “The Americans assured us at the time that they would be able to ensure that (Ukrainian President) Volodymyr Zelenskyi does not obstruct the peace process. It seems that some difficulties have arisen in this direction,” Lavrov claims.
The Russian foreign minister repeatedly blamed European leaders for the failure of the negotiations. “Brussels and London are trying to convince Washington to abandon its intention to solve the crisis through political and diplomatic means and fully engage in efforts to exert military pressure on Russia,” he continued.
The Kremlin rejects his resignation
“(Rubio and I) are communicating by phone and are ready to hold a face-to-face meeting if necessary,” said the head of the Department of Diplomacy. His interview was published just days after the media reported the alleged loss of his support in the highest circles and a plan to replace him in office. The Kremlin rejected this on Friday.
The information was brought by The Moscow Times newspaper, according to which Putin withdrew Lavrov from the public eye after the United States canceled the planned summit of the presidents in Budapest. The further expansion of this theory was helped by the fact that Lavrov was not physically present in the Kremlin during last week’s announcement about Russia’s consideration of resuming nuclear tests.
The Financial Times (FT) wrote at the end of last month that the United States decided to cancel the meeting in Budapest after a conversation between foreign ministers Marco Rubio and Lavrov because of Russia’s uncompromising approach. Lavrov is a longtime ally of President Putin and has been the head of the Department of Diplomacy for more than 21 years.
