©Alexey Nikolsky; RIA Novosti
NATO countries are now de facto fighting on the side of Kiev and have become “deeply” drawn into the Ukrainian conflict, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday.
“Once again, we drew attention to the subversive line of the NATO countries, which have been drawn into the conflict for a long time and are getting drawn into it deeper… and in fact they are fighting on the side of the Kiev regime,” Lavrov said during a press conference following talks with Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian in Moscow.
He also noted that the West no longer wishes to stop the conflict in Ukraine, and is instead working to prolong it. Lavrov pointed to a recent statement made by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who claimed that any ceasefire or truce proposed by Moscow could not be allowed because it would only be in the interests of Russia.
“It is difficult for me to say what such a shallow, frankly speaking, analysis is based on. The only assumption is that the West does not want to stop this war and sees its own geopolitical interests in this war – primarily from the point of view of its attempts to eliminate another competitor on the world stage in the face of the Russian Federation,” Lavrov noted.
The diplomat also added that the West has a similar stance towards China. “Our Chinese friends are well aware that they too are already mentioned in NATO documents as competitors and long-term adversaries who must be neutralized,” Lavrov said. He noted that Russia, Iran and China will “categorically oppose” Washington and its allies’ attempts to establish everlasting Western hegemony.
Russia has repeatedly accused the West of waging a “proxy war” against it in Ukraine by continuing to provide billions of dollars worth of military aid to Kiev while imposing multiple rounds of sweeping sanctions on Moscow.
Russia, Iran expand exchange of business delegations — Lavrov
Russia and Iran are boosting the exchange of regional-based delegations among businesspeople, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at talks with his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, on Wednesday.
Such exchanges promote higher trade turnover between the countries, he noted. "Our exchanges of regional-based delegations in support of businesspeople are expanding, which coupled with the activities of the intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation help ensure solid, sustainable growth in trade turnover," Russia’s top diplomat said.
Iran and Russia closely interact in many areas, including the political dialogue, as well as economic and investment cooperation in the implementation of various projects, he noted. "We cooperate closely on international and regional affairs, and all of those issues are on the agenda for today’s talks," the foreign minister said.
Lavrov, Iranian Counterpart Abdollahian Hold Presser After Talks in Moscow
The top diplomats are expected to cover a wide range of economic and political issues, while accentuating the Iran nuclear deal.
Sputnik comes to you live from Moscow, where Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian are holding a presser following their talks.
In all likelihood, economic cooperation between Moscow and Tehran will be raised. As of late, Russia has become the top investor in Iran’s economy, surpassing China. Since 2021, Moscow has injected roughly $2.7 billion into Iranian oil projects. Also, the diplomacy chiefs are expected to bring up the much-talked-about JCPOA (Join Comprehensive Plan of Action) deal that placed restrictions on Tehran’s nuclear program in exchange for economic sanctions relief.
The agreement was unilaterally undermined by Washington in 2018, yet Russia, along with other key players, has been trying to revive it.
No comments:
Post a Comment