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Russia not setting preconditions for talks on Ukraine — Lavrov

The foreign minister stressed that Russia was deceived "when they stated that NATO would not expand eastwards and when they emphasized their commitment to resolve [the conflict] based on the UN Charter"

MOSCOW, December 26. /TASS/. Russia has not set any preconditions for talks on resolving the Ukraine conflict; rather, it insists that the existing agreements be implemented, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Russian and foreign media.

"When we are told about Russia setting preconditions [for peace talks], these are not preconditions but rather demands that what was agreed upon previously be implemented," Russia’s top diplomat explained.

"It turns out they deceived us," Lavrov continued. "[They deceived us] when they stated that NATO would not expand eastwards and when they emphasized their commitment to resolve [the conflict] based on the UN Charter while they categorically ignored that the Charter not only confirms the principle of territorial integrity but also upholds the principle of equality and self-determination of peoples," he stressed.