Many residents of unfriendly countries sympathize with Russia no matter what actions the collective West takes against the country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Saturday.
"The line of creation and unification that we have chosen enjoys the widest support in the world. Even in the states that take unfriendly actions against Russia, there are many who sympathize with our country," Lavrov said at the 16th Assembly of the Russian World forum.
The minister recalled that the majority of European countries had taken part in hostilities against Russia during the Napoleonic Wars and the Second World War, and both Napoleon and Hitler had wanted to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia but failed to do so, adding that the same would be the result of the current conflict.
In early September, Putin said that if Ukraine had a desire to negotiate, Russia would not reject this proposal, but the talks would be held on the basis of the agreements reached in Istanbul. He said Russia had never turned down talks with Ukraine, but was not ready to discuss ephemeral demands.