Moscow says ceasefire calls are aimed at allowing Western countries to strengthen kyiv militarily, while tensions on the front remain high.
Russia accused Western countries on Monday of seeking to establish a ceasefire in Ukraine with the aim of rearming kyiv, which is facing difficulties on the front against Russian forces.
This accusation was expressed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during the visit of his Hungarian counterpart, Peter Szijjarto, to Moscow.
Lavrov questions Western intentions
Sergei Lavrov criticized Western diplomatic circles, saying that “We are starting to talk about a ceasefire as a way to give Ukraine a respite and to give Ukraine the opportunity to once again feed Ukraine with modern long-range weapons“.
He added: “This is certainly not the path to peace“, thus expressing his doubts about the true intentions of Western countries.
Speculation about a possible peace process between Moscow and kyiv has intensified since the election of Donald Trump in the United States. He promised to put an end to the conflict within “24 hours” as soon as he took office in January, without however specifying the means by which he intends to achieve this.
Russia declares ready to negotiate
Despite distrust of the intentions of Western countries, Sergei Lavrov said that Russia was ready to enter into negotiations. “We are ready to negotiate“, he said, specifying that Moscow wanted these negotiations to take place.”on the basis of an overall consideration of the legitimate interests of each party“.
Since the start of the conflict, Vladimir Putin has formulated strict demands to consider a cessation of hostilities: the complete surrender of kyiv, the guarantee that Ukraine will never join NATO, and the recognition of the conquered Ukrainian territories, i.e. more than 18% of the country.
These conditions were deemed unacceptable by Western countries as well as by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who calls for a “just peace” which would guarantee Ukraine’s “survival”.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, is one of the few Western leaders to maintain regular dialogue with Vladimir Putin.
russia ukraine Conflict in Ukraine ceasefire Ukraine Sergei Lavrov West and Ukraine military support for Ukraine Russia-West tensions Russia-Ukraine negotiations vladimir putin
