Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused French President Macron and German Chancellor Merz of losing common sense over their stance on Russia, also calling Kyiv a "Nazi regime".
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz of losing common sense over their recent comments on Russia.
Speaking at a press conference after talks with Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Jeenbek Kulubayev, Lavrov criticised the two leaders for labelling Russia as "the main threat" in their recent joint article and calling for Europe to strengthen its defences.
“For a person who has even the slightest understanding of what is happening in Europe and follows events, these quotes alone are enough to understand that these figures have completely lost their common sense and are openly trying to return to the times when France and Germany wanted to conquer Europe, primarily the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union,” Lavrov said.
He also accused Western countries of trying to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia by supporting what he described as Kyiv’s "Nazi regime".
“We are witnessing an unprecedented confrontation between our country and the collective West, which has decided once again to go to conflict with us and inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, using Kyiv as a 'Nazi regime' battering ram. The West has never succeeded in this and will not succeed this time,” Lavrov stated.
Lavrov added that Russia remains open to negotiations with Ukraine but is not ready for what he called fraudulent approaches pushed by some European leaders. He said resolving the situation requires eliminating threats to Russia's security arising from NATO expansion and attempts to draw Ukraine into the alliance.
He also called for an end to what he described as actions targeting Russian language and culture in Ukraine.
Lavrov made these remarks during his official visit to Kyrgyzstan from June 29 to 30, where he met President Sadyr Japarov and participated in the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting.
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Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for 29th June, covering the latest developments you need to know.
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