MOSCOW
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday that he expects new contacts between Moscow and Washington regarding a settlement of the conflict in Ukraine.
Speaking in an interview with Russia’s Pervyy TV channel, Lavrov said the Aug. 15 meeting between presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska concluded with the American leader taking a break to adjust his position with European allies.
“I think we will have additional contacts. We parted ways with the understanding that in Anchorage we accepted the logic promoted by Trump based on an understanding of root causes and our position. He did not refute this logic. Trump said he would consult with his allies,” he said.
Lavrov added that Europeans are publicly trying to dissuade the US leadership from any constructive actions toward Russia in the context of the Ukrainian crisis, but have so far been unsuccessful.
He said Trump faces strong opposition within the US. During his first term, the president demonstrated a willingness to mend ties with Russia, but the so-called “deep state,” which Lavrov said was much stronger at that time, prevented it.
Lavrov said that in preparing for his new term, Trump formed “a strong, powerful, influential team of like-minded people.”
He added, however, that some people, for example, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, “is going beyond the scope of his mandate and the line drawn by President Donald Trump.”
According to Lavrov, Trump realizes that Russia is not interested in seizing territory from Ukraine but rather in ensuring the rights of Russian people living on those lands.
“During the talks in Alaska, we also mentioned that, among other things, the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church is banned in Ukraine. The US president was astonished. He asked US Secretary of State Marco Rubio several times if this was true. You could see his attitude towards this kind of thing,” he said.
Lavrov said Trump is trying to remove from the agenda the war “artificially created” by his predecessor, Joe Biden and his team.
Turning to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Lavrov said it was “a separate matter.”
“It’s a tragedy, a humanitarian catastrophe, just like many other crises around the world. The desire of US President Donald Trump and his team to make their contribution and take the initiative, to reconcile irreconcilable opponents, who can object to the idea that peace is better than war?” Lavrov said.
