Russia and US Agree to Disagree But Stress Need to Avoid Conflict, Lavrov States

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has emphasized the importance of preventing tensions between global powers from escalating into direct confrontation, particularly between Russia and the United States.

"Where interests do not coincide, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also said this, it is the duty of responsible powers to prevent this mismatch from degenerating into confrontation. This is absolutely our position," Lavrov stated in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper.

Lavrov also offered his perspective on former US President Donald Trump, describing him as a pragmatist with a distinctive approach to politics. He noted that Trump’s slogan centers around common sense, indicating a shift in political methodology while maintaining the overarching goal of "Make America Great Again."

"Now he has a new cap: 'Everything that Trump promised, he did.' This gives a lively, human character to politics. That's why it's interesting with him," Lavrov remarked.

Shifting focus to Europe’s historical role in global conflicts, Lavrov argued that many of the world's major tragedies can be traced back to European actions. He cited colonization, the Crusades, the Crimean War, Napoleon’s conquests, World War I, and Hitler’s rise as examples.

"If we look at history in retrospect, the Americans did not play any instigating or even 'incendiary' role. And now, after Joe Biden's term, people who want to be guided by common sense have come [to office]. They say outright that they want to end all wars, they want peace. Who demands the show to go on in the form of war? Europe," he asserted.

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Regarding the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, Lavrov intensified his criticism of Volodymyr Zelensky, accusing him of betraying his initial peace promises and cultural ties with Russia. Echoing President Putin’s rhetoric, he labeled Zelensky a "pure Nazi" and a "traitor to the Jewish people."

Furthermore, Lavrov stated that the arrogance of Western countries and their plans to allow Ukraine to join NATO and establish military bases in Crimea were what contributed significantly to the failure of the talks between Moscow and the West in 2022.

"I hoped then that reason and common sense would prevail, but arrogance won the upper hand instead. It was not just the plans to financially draw Ukraine into NATO and to create bases in Crimea, on the Sea of Azov. All these plans were there, but aside from geopolitical concerns, arrogance played a big role as well. Indeed, how come? They [Russia] say don't do it, and we should agree? I am not exaggerating. That is literally what they [the West] were guided by at the time. It was unfortunate. There was no common sense in that," Lavrov said.

Putin had been hoping to resolve the Ukrainian conflict at the negotiating table, giving Western countries a chance to do so right until February 2022, the top Russian diplomat added.

"Back in January 2022, I met with then-US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. He said NATO was not their business. They could only promise that the number of medium-range missiles they would deploy in Ukraine would be limited in some way, and that's it. This was extreme hypocrisy, impunity and exclusivity," he said.

Lavrov also specifically criticized Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen for suggesting that, at this point, peace might be worse than war for Ukraine. He further accused leaders such as British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron of attempting to pressure Trump into prolonging the conflict rather than seeking a swift resolution.

"Impudence," Lavrov remarked, highlighting what he sees as deliberate efforts by European powers to escalate the situation.