Lavrov reveals to empty UN hall what Russia ties to ending Ukraine war
Photo: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (Getty Images)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia ties its "hopes" for ending the war in Ukraine to further negotiations with the United States, reports Russian media.
"We associate certain hopes with the continuation of the Russian-American dialogue, especially after the Alaska summit," Lavrov said in an empty UN hall.
Notably, his speech at the UN General Assembly took place in an almost empty hall.
Photo: Lavrov's speech was delivered to an almost empty UN General Assembly hall (broadcast screenshot)
According to him, Russia sees the current US administration's approach not only as a way to support "the search for realistic paths to resolve the Ukrainian crisis" but also as a desire "to develop pragmatic cooperation without taking an ideological stance."
Lavrov also claimed that Vladimir Putin has been open to negotiations from the very beginning.
"As President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly emphasized, Russia has been and remains open to negotiations on addressing the root causes of the conflict from the outset," Lavrov added while speaking at the UN General Assembly.
Putin delays peace talks
In August, a meeting took place in Alaska between the leaders of the United States and Russia. Afterward, Donald Trump hosted Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House.
The discussions focused on security guarantees for postwar Ukraine. After the summit, Trump said he would begin arranging a bilateral meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin, followed by another meeting including the US president.
In addition, US officials claimed that Putin had promised to meet Zelenskyy, but Russia denied this.
Recently, Zelenskyy gave an interview to Fox News, reiterating that Ukraine is ready for a leaders' meeting. He noted that Russia was even offered to hold the meeting in Kazakhstan. However, the president said Putin wants to continue the war, which is why he refused the meetings.
