Russia wants to end Ukraine war as soon as possible, says foreign minister

MOSCOW

Russia wants to resolve the Ukraine situation and end the war as soon as possible, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday.

Protecting the lives of soldiers and civilians is a priority for Moscow, Lavrov said in an interview on a Russian news program.

“We would like to settle this situation as soon as possible, to end this war that the West was preparing and eventually unleashed against us through Ukraine,” he said.

“The priority for us is the lives of soldiers and the lives of civilians who remain in combat zones.”

However, Lavrov said Moscow has no desire to hold talks with the West, especially as Western politicians “have proclaimed that security in Europe should be built against Russia.”

On the US’ delivery of Patriot missile systems to Ukraine, Lavrov said Moscow was told via diplomatic channels that Washington does not intend to fight directly with Russia.

“We asked the Americans … whether the decision to transfer the Patriot system … means that there will be American specialists there (in Ukraine),” he said.

“We were explained in detail that there are no such plans, precisely because the Americans do not want to fight directly against Russia. They said it will take several months to put the Patriot system into operation, during which Ukrainian servicemen can master the technology,” he added.

He said the main reason why Washington insists on resuming inspections under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty is to “understand what awaits them in case of direct conflict with Russia.”

• Russain Foreign Ministery
• Sergey Lavrov
• Ukraine