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Lavrov excoriates US-convened Summit for Democracy as 'odious project'

The foreign minister pointed out that "the Western countries systematically ruin the international UN-centric architecture, established on the basis of the results of World War II and try to replace it with some rules-based order that benefits only them"

MOSCOW, December 1. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has described the US initiative for convening a Summit for Democracy on December 9-10 as a "get-together" and "one of the most odious projects."

"The Americans decide at their sole discretion who is to be invited to this get-together and who is not to be invited. In the meantime, in the wake of bombardments of Yugoslavia, Iraq and Libya and a 20-year-long experiment in Afghanistan and other adventures Washington’s attempts to usurp the right to gauge the degree of democracy in this or that country look simply cynical," Lavrov told the Federation Council on Wednesday.

Lavrov said that "the Western countries systematically ruin the international UN-centric architecture, established on the basis of the results of World War II and try to replace it with some rules-based order that benefits only them."

"These so-called rules are formulated behind closed doors, within a group of select few and in bypass of the United Nations. Then there follow attempts to dictate them to everybody else. The United States’ initiative for convening a Summit for Democracy is one of the most odious projects that has emerged under the trademark of this world order," Lavrov said.

"It is obvious that Washington has set course towards drawing new division lines in international affairs, this time, in the context of a group of countries that fancy themselves the rulers of humanity’s destiny."

Lavrov stressed that "the situation in world affairs remains complicated and in some respects is degrading."

"The main reason for this is the unpreparedness of Washington and its Western allies to recognize the realities of the emerging polycentric world order and their stubborn wish to address the emerging problems from the position of strength with reliance on a wide set of illegitimate instruments - from unilateral economic sanctions to outright interference in the internal affairs in the spirit of color revolutions," Lavrov said.