LONDON, January 28. /TASS/. The statements of former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson about the Normandy Format cast doubt on the West's "ability to fulfil contractual obligations", the Russian Embassy in London said in a statement.
"Whilst in Kiev some days ago, former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson added his voice to the score of self-revealing public statements by European politicians that confirm the intentional double-dealing and procrastination by Western states on the issue of a negotiated settlement on Donbass in 2014-2022. According to Mr Johnson, the Normandy Format meetings of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine in support of the direct dialogue between Kiev, Donetsk and Lugansk provided for by the Minsk ‘Complex of Measures’ were nothing more than a ‘diplomatic charade’," the embassy said, adding "The revelations by Mr Johnson and other Western politicians question the general reliability of our opponents in the Euro-Atlantic, undermine confidence in their statements and their ability to fulfil contractual obligations."
According to the statement, "It turns out that while Russia was honestly striving to implement the Minsk Agreements sanctified by a UN Security Council Resolution, acting as the Accord’s consistent and main advocate, London and other Western capitals had already decided in favor of a scenario of military escalation. Moreover, they had been actively preparing their Ukrainian proteges for this scenario, pouring weapons to the Kiev regime and permanently turning a blind eye to its continuous deadly barrages against Donetsk and Lugansk, its suppression of the Russian-speaking population and its persecution of the official opposition in Ukraine. Meanwhile, it is well worth remembering the numerous Western claims that Russia was allegedly hindering the implementation of Minsk Agreements."
The embassy said it regrets that "forgeries, fraud and falsification, or, to quote Boris Johnson, ‘charade’, have become an inalienable part of the Western foreign policy toolbox" and added that these methods "run counter to the objective of building stable European security, unless the goal is actually the notorious ‘rules-based world order’ NATO and the EU are so fond of.".