Kiev, West not seeking peace, Russia to continue special military op — Lavrov
"In order to establish a sustainable and equitable peace in the Ukrainian crisis, it is necessary to eliminate its underlying causes," the Russian foreign minister added
MOSCOW, February 21. /TASS/. Kiev and the Western countries don’t demonstrate political will for peaceful settlement in Ukraine, that’s why Russia has no choice but to continue the special military operation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
"Neither Kiev nor the West show political will to settle the conflict. We don’t have a choice, we will continue the special military operation until all its goals are achieved," he told the Brazilian newspaper O Globo in an interview.
The top diplomat recalled that the goals and the tasks of the special military operation were formulated by Russian President Vladimir Putin. "The demilitarization and the denazification of Ukraine, the elimination of threats to Russia's security emanating from it," the minister pointed out.
"In order to establish a sustainable and equitable peace in the Ukrainian crisis, it is necessary to eliminate its underlying causes. The West should stop pumping Ukraine with weapons, and Kiev should stop the hostilities. Ukraine must return to its neutral, non-aligned and nuclear-weapon-free status, to respect the rights and the freedoms of its citizens. It is necessary to respect the new territorial realities, the situation on the ground," Lavrov added.