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Russia doubts US readiness to implement security guarantees, says senior diplomat

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov noted that a political will is required on behalf of western partners in order to reach the aim of security guarantees

GENEVA, January 10. /TASS/. Moscow is uncertain of the United States’ possible pledge to follow bilateral security guarantees with Russia in case they are approved, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Monday.

"We see no certainty in their implementation," Ryabkov said following the US-Russia talks on security guarantees in Geneva earlier in the day. "Our president previously raised an issue that considering a negative experience, which we had enormously accumulated over the past, a scheme regarding obligations on behalf of the United States was definitely not ideal, but paraphrasing and personally misinterpreting it, I should say that the signal was - it is better than nothing," Ryabkov said.

The Russian diplomat noted that a political will is required on behalf of western partners in order to reach the aim of security guarantees.

Russian-US talks on Moscow’s draft agreements on security guarantees with Washington and measures to ensure the security of Russia and NATO countries will were held in Geneva on January 10.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov and Deputy Defense Minister Colonel General Alexander Fomin were in the lead of Russia’s inter-agency commission comprising officials from the Foreign and Defense Ministries.

On December 17, Russia’s Foreign Ministry published drafts of an agreement with the United States on security guarantees and an agreement between Russia and the NATO member states on security measures. The drafts were handed over to US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Karen Donfried on December 15.