MOSCOW, October 21. /TASS/. US President Joe Biden's call for talks on nuclear arms control without preconditions is nothing but a deception, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with aif.ru.
"It is rooted in evil. The call to discuss strategic stability and nuclear arms control without prerequisites is disingenuous. What does ‘without prerequisites’ entail? It implies that the Americans retain the right to designate us as an adversary in their doctrinal documents and to officially declare their objective as delivering a strategic defeat to Russia on the battlefield," the top diplomat said.
According to Lavrov, based on what Biden said, Russia should accept these conditions and agree with the United States on arms reduction, without demanding a rejection of the current US policy.
"Arms control negotiations must be predicated on mutual respect and the reciprocal recognition that war should be avoided. When they propose, ‘Let us commence negotiations without any conditions, yet my objective remains your destruction on the battlefield,’ is that a prudent approach? I think not," the minister emphasized.
He pointed out that it is necessary to talk about it taking into account all factors, "rather than cunningly advancing an attractive slogan that conceals a desire for unilateral benefit."
Earlier, Biden said that he was ready to negotiate with Russia, China and North Korea on nuclear arms reduction without preconditions. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov pointed out that the United States was urging Russia to hold talks on strategic stability without preconditions in order to try to consolidate unilateral military advantages, but Moscow was categorically against it.