Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov has asserted that Europe is advancing a “hopelessly outdated and failed” policy on Ukraine.
This came as he spoke at a press conference after a meeting with Qatar’s Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha.
He added that Russia is waiting for Europeans to stop “lying that Russia blocks negotiations.”
“When the political balance of power regarding Ukraine changes, as was evident in the United Nations vote, Europe immediately tries to undermine this trend, announcing new large military aid packages to Kyiv, pushing it to continue fighting, and openly stating, as I think the Danish Prime Minister did, that peace is worse than war for Ukraine in this situation.”
Sergey Lavrov
Also, he stated that Moscow believes that “the best aid from those who sincerely want to help resolve the conflict is to come to realize what caused it.”
He stressed that Russia is not considering any options that involve a deployment of European peacekeepers in Ukraine.
“The approach that is being imposed by the Europeans, first of all France and the British, is aimed…at heating up the conflict further and stopping any attempts to calm it down.”
Sergey Lavrov
Early this week, Monday, US President Donald Trump, speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, who was in Washington for talks, said that Russian President, Vladimir Putin would agree to European peacekeeping forces to secure a possible ceasefire in Ukraine.
Additionally, Lavrov said that Russia opposed the idea put forth that there is a line dividing both sides, with one part Russian and the other Ukrainian. “That will not happen,” he said.
Lavrov noted that the Russian constitution defines the country’s territory and according to that, the Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson belong to Russia, even if Russian troops do not fully control them.
Referring to the alleged discrimination against Russian speakers, Lavrov noted that whatever “remains of Ukraine should be freed from racist laws.”
“There are people living there that are more comfortable speaking Russian, that want to preserve the traditions of their ancestors, who were brought up in Russian culture.”
Sergey Lavrov
Furthermore, Lavrov noted that any Ukraine settlement will broach the topic of seized Russian assets.
“As regards our assets stolen primarily by the Europeans, no, you know, there were no talks about that. But I have no doubt that this issue will remain part of the settlement process. Naturally, it will not go away.
“By the way, the Americans understand this as well. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently said that the issue of frozen Russian assets should be considered, particularly in connection with the steps taken by Russia in response, which affect the interests of American companies. These are reasonable thoughts, emphasizing that we should reject theft-based methods and not expect that they will go unanswered.”
Sergey Lavrov
Russia, US To Meet In Turkey
Moreover, Lavrov disclosed that on February 27, 2025, Russian and American diplomats will meet in Istanbul to discuss problems in the work of the two countries’ embassies.
He noted that the problems stacked up as a result of “illegal activities” of the previous US administration, which Moscow had to reciprocate by creating “uncomfortable conditions” for the work of the US embassy.
According to Russian Foreign Minister, the meeting in Istanbul will make it clear “how fast and efficiently the sides can move forward.”
The two countries decided to restore staffing levels at diplomatic missions during high-level, bilateral talks last week in Saudi Arabia.
That meeting represented an important step toward President Donald Trump’s goal of boosting ties with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, which has caused alarm among Washington’s European allies.
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