MOSCOW, January 18. /TASS/. All media speculations that Russia and Ukraine may allegedly hold direct talks in Geneva are groundless rumors, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a news conference on the achievements of Russian diplomacy in 2023.
"Rumors will be rumors," he said when asked by TASS to comment on the relevant media articles.
"It is obvious to everyone that somebody else, not Ukraine, will be deciding when to stop and to start talking seriously about realistic conditions for ending this conflict. This implies rejection of Nazi ideology, of Nazi rhetoric, and of racism towards everything Russian. And giving up the intention to join NATO," Lavrov said. "This is not daydreaming. These are indispensable conditions for the preservation of the Ukrainian people as an independent nation having its own identity, not fulfilling someone else's orders."
It is with the West that the conditions for ending the conflict in Ukraine are to be negotiated, but the West is not interested in this, Lavrov said. "Of course, it is necessary to talk about it with the West. We recalled how in April 2022 the West banned Ukraine from signing agreements [with Russia]. Similarly, the West is not interested in any negotiations starting now. This command is issued unequivocally from Washington," he pointed out.
In this regard, Lavrov also drew attention to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s remark that for now he saw no prospects for negotiations even on a long-term ceasefire in Ukraine.
"They don't want to talk about a settlement at all. Sometimes they drop Freudian remarks about declaring a ceasefire for the sole reason of putting more military muscle into Ukraine. Precisely the way they used the Minsk agreements," Lavrov said.