Liudmyla Zhernovska02:55, 06.12.24

He once again assures that Russia did not start the war.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that for “peace” Ukraine must abandon NATO membership, recognize four regions as Russian, and “protect” the Russian language, culture, and church.

In an interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson, he said that there were no hostilities between the United States and the Russian Federation, but that a hybrid war was ongoing. He then began to tell the Russian version of the war against Ukraine, presenting Moscow as the “protector” of Ukrainians and repeating propaganda theses.

Lavrov’s main statements in the interview:

• the Oreshnik missile strike was a message to the US and Ukraine that Russia was ready to use any means to prevent the West from achieving its “strategic defeat”;
• Washington did not perceive this as any major threat, but it was only a test launch;
• Moscow is ready to send new “messages” if the West does not draw conclusions;
• The Russian Federation hates even the thought of nuclear war with the United States;
• Russia has no intention of destroying the Ukrainian people, because Ukrainians are “brothers and sisters” to Russians;
• Ukraine should never be a member of NATO or any other military bloc, should not conduct foreign exercises, and should not have military bases on its territory;
• Kyiv should recognize Kherson, Zaporizhia, Luhansk and Donetsk regions as parts of the Russian Federation;
• The Russian language, Russian culture, and the Russian church should be protected in Ukraine; 

When asked how many people have already died in this war, Lavrov compared the civilian losses in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip, calling the deaths of Ukrainians a “tragedy” and Palestinians a “catastrophe.”

(C)UNIAN 2024