MOSCOW, August 31. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday said Western public figures exhibit double standards and pursue geopolitical purposes when they extol former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev’s role in the world politics, while disregarding his stance on Crimea and Ukraine.
"In one of his interviews, when he was no longer in office, not so long ago, maybe a year and a half ago, he was asked exactly about this: about the Soviet Union, how this happened, and about Ukraine. He said he is Russian and his wife is Ukrainian. He said that it made no difference for him. He said that the Ukrainian lands, especially in Eastern Ukraine, had always been Russian lands and Ukraine received elements of statehood only as part of the USSR. And when the collapse of the USSR took place, which he took close to his heart, as you know, he recalled it in that very interview and said that at the time of the Belavezha Accords, the collapse of the USSR, everyone was euphoric about ‘taking power from Gorbachev.’ And he stressed this: No one thought about Crimea, which is Russian, historically, according to all the laws of justice," Lavrov said at the educational marathon Znaniye, which translates as ‘knowledge.’
"When Western figures praising Mikhail Sergeyevich's contribution to world politics ignore these statements of his, which, by and large, are in line with the analysis given in the article by President [of Russia Vladimir] Putin, that’s obviously double standards," the minister went on to say. "And this is a clear desire to use the name of this man, including after he died, for their geopolitical purposes."
He said that following Gorbachev’s death a lot of commentaries by Western political figures appeared that "stress Gorbachev's unique contribution to East-West rapprochement and his many other successes."
"But one thing is interesting: <... > you have seen how Western figures who are now extolling the era of rapprochement between East and West after the Cold War, while declaring themselves winners in the Cold War, they also a few days ago participated in a coven called the Crimean Platform, during which they hysterically demanded the return, as they say, of Crimea to Ukraine, to stop the aggression, occupation and so on," the minister said.
Lavrov also pointed out that those who spoke about relations with Gorbachev include former US Secretary of State James Baker.
"Baker said of Gorbachev: ‘I thought he was an honest negotiator and I could count on his word.’ That’s an amazing revelation. Because we were counting on Baker's word as well. By we I mean the leadership of the Soviet Union. About the non-expansion of NATO to the east, among other things. They cheated us brazenly," Lavrov said.