Talking in English, Lavrov stated the West had refused to debate upholding safety ensures for Russia within the weeks and months earlier than the February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, referred to as a “particular army operation” in Moscow.
As Russian troops massed on the Ukrainian border in early 2022, Western leaders urged Moscow to not invade its smaller neighbour. French President Emmanuel Macron met Putin three weeks earlier than the invasion, saying he had obtained assurances that Russia would take no motion to worsen the state of affairs.
In his feedback, Lavrov stated Ukraine had misplaced the chance to keep up its territorial integrity by twice rejecting proposals for a deal, as soon as earlier than the full-scale warfare started after which in talks in April 2022 in Turkey.
“We didn’t begin this warfare. We had been for years and years and years sending warnings that pushing NATO nearer and nearer to our borders goes to create an issue,” he stated.
Putin despatched his troops over the border from Russia and its ally Belarus, with Putin saying Moscow was defending Russian-speakers in japanese Ukraine and searching for to “de-Nazify” the Ukrainian management in Kyiv.
