MOSCOW, November 29. /TASS/. It is the United States that should initiate a resumption of strategic stability dialogue with Russia because negotiations in this area are only possible if Washington shows a willingness to hold an equal conversation, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told reporters on the sidelines of an event hosted by the Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Fund on Tuesday.
"We aren’t initiating anything as we act according to the rules of the game, without deviating from them. Since the other party decided to suspend the dialogue, it’s up to them to initiate its resumption if it finds it reasonable," Ryabkov said, when asked about the prospect of a Russian-US dialogue on the issue.
"Otherwise, we will find ourselves in a losing position. The Americans are well aware of our approach to the issue, which does not depend on the current situation but is based on the national security interests that we are deeply aware of," he added.
"We believe that dialogue is only possible based on the balance of interests and efforts to find common ground, while one party’s attempts to impose its views on the other are unacceptable. If the Americans understand this and work accordingly, there is a chance. If not, it means that this dialogue has no future even if it is resumed," the senior Russian diplomat added.
The Russian deputy foreign minister pointed out that it depended solely on Washington whether the strategic stability dialogue would be resumed or not. There were no signals indicating US interest in this kind of dialogue either before or after the decision to postpone the meeting of the bilateral consultative commission (on New START), Ryabkov stressed.