MOSCOW, September 1. /TASS/. The West is trying to discredit Russia’s policy in world affairs and "distort" Moscow’s approaches to various international problems, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said speaking at the MGIMO university on Friday.
"A certain part of what is called ‘the Western political elite’ does not like our independent policy," the minister noted. "They would like to deal with obedient Russia, which is ready to make concessions to the detriment of its own interests. Hence the desire to punish us for actually defending our rightful place in international affairs, our rightful place in the world."
"You certainly know how this is done. Various deterrence tools are used in such attempts, including sanctions and media wars aimed at distorting our approaches towards various international problems and discrediting our policy in international affairs," Lavrov went on to say.
According to Russia’s top diplomat, Moscow is seeking "neither the revival of the empire nor geopolitical or any other expansion."
"All that we want is to build our own lives without anyone’s hints, without unwanted advice, without attempts to pit against us friendly peoples with whom we have centuries of shared history and family ties," the foreign minister said.
"However, we do not impose our views or recipes on anyone. I have already said that we do not accept the logic of someone’s exceptionalism in accordance with the principle ‘Gods may do what cattle may not."
Lavrov stressed that "it is difficult for many people in the West to admit the obvious thing. The post-bipolar stage is over, and the expectations that it will be replaced by the accession of the hegemon have failed."
"Today the process of shaping a new, more fair and democratic polycentric world order is underway. Its essence is the emergence and strengthening new economic power centers and the political influence associated with that," he added.
According to Lavrov, Russia is well aware of who actually violated the fundamental principles of international law in recent years."
"We know who, trampling under foot its commitments in the OSCE and UN Security Council Resolutions, bombed Yugoslavia, Iraq and Libya, who sowed chaos in the Middle East and North Africa, who gave an opportunity to international terror groups to lift their heads, whose adventures led to the creation of Al-Qaeda [terrorist group, outlawed in Russia - TASS], the ISIL [former name of the Islamic State terror group, outlawed in Russia - TASS], Jabhat al-Nusra [terrorist group, outlawed in Russia - TASS], which are the key enemies of mankind today. Russia has always been opposed to disregard of law in the international arena."