Russia’s Lavrov Lambasts Washington as Biden Sets Condition for War’s End

On the same day President Biden set very narrow parameters for any possible sit-down with President Putin, Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, accused the West of becoming directly involved in the Ukraine war by supplying that country with weapons and training its soldiers. Yet it is Moscow’s doubling down on its ill-fated campaign to crush Ukraine that appears to have prompted Mr. Biden to state at a press conference Thursday, “There’s one way for this war to end — the rational way. Putin to pull out of Ukraine, number one.” He added that “it appears he’s not going to do that. He’s paying a very high price for failing to do it.”In a video call with reporters, Mr. Lavrov said, “You shouldn’t say that the U.S. and NATO aren’t taking part in this war. You are directly participating in it.” He added, “And not just by providing weapons but also by training personnel. You are training their military on your territory, on the territories of Britain, Germany, Italy, and other countries.” Mr. Lavrov also said that Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities and other key infrastructure points were intended to weaken Ukraine’s military potential and derail the shipments of Western weapons.He said the barrages of missiles, drones, and artillery fire that have left millions of Ukrainians without power, heating, and water were intended to “knock out energy facilities that allow you to keep pumping deadly weapons into Ukraine in order to kill the Russians.” Mr. Lavrov said the infrastructure that is targeted by those attacks “is used to ensure the combat potential of the Ukrainian armed forces and the nationalist battalions.”Ukraine and the West have accused Russia of targeting key civilian infrastructure in order to reduce morale, cause Ukraine’s people to suffer during the winter, and to force the government in Kyiv into peace talks on Moscow’s terms.The southern city of Kherson, which Russia’s forces seized in the opening days of the conflict and withdrew from last month, is among the places targeted. Russian shelling on Thursday cut off power in the recently liberated city just days after it was restored.Weeks before the pullback allowed Ukrainian forces to reclaim Kherson, Russia declared the entire Kherson region part of its territory along with three other regions following hastily called “referendums” that Ukraine and the West rejected as shams.Asked how the strikes on infrastructure in Kherson and other areas comply with Moscow’s stated goal of protecting Ukraine’s Russian-speaking population, Mr. Lavrov responded by drawing parallels with the Battle of Stalingrad during World War II. “The city of Stalingrad also was part of our territory, and we beat the Germans to make them flee,” he said.Mr. Lavrov insisted that Moscow remains open for talks on ending the conflict. “We never asked for talks but always said that we are ready to listen to those who are interested in a negotiated settlement,” he said.The Kremlin has urged Ukraine to acknowledge Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014, as part of Russia and to recognize other land gains that Russia has made since sending its troops into Ukraine on February 24. It also has pushed for guarantees that Ukraine wouldn’t join NATO, along with vaguely formulated “demilitarization” and “denazification” goals.Asked if a meeting between Messrs. Putin and Biden was possible, Mr. Lavrov replied that “we don’t shun contacts,” but added that “we haven’t yet heard any serious ideas yet.”“The goal has been announced to defeat Russia on the battlefield or even destroy Russia,” he said. “How can the goal of defeating Russia not bear significance for strategic stability, considering that they want to destroy a key strategic stability actor?”During the online news conference that lasted for more than two hours, Lavrov railed against the U.S. and its NATO allies, accusing them of trampling on international law while trying to isolate and destroy Russia.Mr. Lavrov’s rant appeared to be at odds not only with reality but also with the release by a British defense think tank of captured Russian documents indicating that Russia intended to take over Ukraine in 10 days and annex it by last August. Britain’s Sky News reported that the documents were apparently signed by Mr. Putin.

Russia’s Lavrov Lambasts Washington as Biden Sets Condition for War’s End

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