He denied media reports that the meeting announced by American President Donald Trump with the illegitimate head of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in Hungary fell through due to unacceptable conditions put forward by the Kremlin.
Lavrov claims that Moscow sent Washington a preliminary memorandum in preparation for the summit, but it allegedly contained everything that Trump and Putin “agreed” on in Alaska on August 15.
“This unofficial document contained nothing other than what was discussed in Anchorage and did not cause rejection among the American interlocutors,” says the head of Russian diplomacy.
He also does not agree with the opinion that it was his conversation with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that finally finished off both the idea of their meeting and the summit of top officials in Budapest.
“Trump said that Rubio would call me back, he called me in three days. We talked well, politely, without any disruptions, confirmed in principle the movement based on the understandings of Anchorage and then parted ways… If I remember correctly, he then said that it was a constructive conversation and it showed quite clearly where we are, so it is not necessary to meet. This can be interpreted in different ways, but that’s what was said. There is a joke: our conscience is clear, we rarely have it We use it. But in this particular case, this is absolutely true,” Lavrov concluded.
Context
On October 16, Trump announced that he intended to hold a meeting with Putin in Hungary. Before this meeting, according to him, Negotiations were planned at the level of foreign ministers.
On October 20, Rubio and Lavrov held telephone conversation. The parties discussed steps to end the war that the Russian Federation unleashed in Ukraine. Kremlin described the conversation as a “constructive discussion” during which “likely concrete steps to implement the agreements” were outlined.
Reuters, citing sources, wrote that the meeting of Russian and American diplomats will take place on October 23. However, on October 21, CNN, citing sources, reported that the meeting of diplomats may not take place as planned because “there are different expectations.” Lavrov's deputy Sergei Ryabkov said that “You can’t postpone something that hasn’t been agreed upon.”
According to Bloomberg, Rubio canceled a planned personal meeting after talking with Lavrov, realizing that the Kremlin was again trying to delay negotiations on a ceasefire in Ukraine and continue the war. Trump's decision cancel meeting with Putin became the result of Rubio’s assessment, which concluded that Moscow has not changed its position, the agency noted.
On October 22, the United States for the first time in Trump's second presidential term imposed sanctions against the Russian Federation.
