MOSCOW, July 3. /TASS/. Russia remains open to a political and diplomatic settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, but prospects are slim due to the stance of Kiev and its Western curators, who place their bets on a military solution, Gennady Gatilov, Russia's permanent representative to the UN headquarters in Geneva, said in an interview with Russian daily Izvestia.

"Russia keeps the door open to a political and diplomatic resolution of the crisis, but the prospects this scenario are rather slim, since Kiev and its Western curators continue betting on the use of military force," he said. "We are not mentioning the fact that the Kiev regime legally banned all negotiations with Moscow."

The diplomat noted that so far there are no vital signs that the United Nations and its Secretary General Antonio Guterres "can play a constructive role in the settlement of the conflict."

"UN efforts on Ukraine are paralyzed by unwillingness of listening to either our point of view or of any other party," Gatilov said. "In fact, this organization, and primarily the General Assembly, was transformed by the West into a platform for voicing unsubstantiated accusations against Russia and repeated speculations in the context of the Ukrainian crisis."

At the same time, according to the diplomat, Russia "treats with respect all efforts of countries, organizations and individuals in the search of possible solutions to the Ukrainian crisis."

"There have already been many voiced proposals and initiatives on the issue," he said. "Recently, a group of African countries voiced similar ideas."

"It all reflects a growing understanding that the current developments in Ukraine pose serious threat not only to the regional security, but also the global security as well," Gatilov noted.

However, the Russian diplomat continued, a targeted work with the Kiev regime and the collective West is required to facilitate the peaceful solution of the conflict.

"The Ukrainian side must be persuaded to cease hostilities and get down to the negotiating table, and the West must stop pumping Ukraine with weapons and dispatching mercenaries over there," Gatilov added.