18 Mar, 15:46

Russia not against resuming ties with Europe — Russian lawmaker

Vyacheslav Nikonov noted that the international landscape has gotten a facelift recently

NEW DELHI, March 18. /TASS/. Russia doesn’t object to restoring relations with Europe if the latter shows a desire to do so, a Russian lawmaker told TASS.

Europe "continues its former policy by inertia. Today, they are in [US President Donald] Trump’s shadow and will stay there until they take a proactive approach," Vyacheslav Nikonov, first deputy chairman of the international committee of Russia’s State Duma, or lower parliament house, said.

"If Europe wants to resume relations, let them do so. We do not object to restoring relations with Europe. We do not object to having relations with Europe. It is them who don’t want to have relations with us," he said.

The Russian lawmaker noted that the international landscape has gotten a facelift recently. "No sooner had Trump said that he is for peace than all of Europe, which in recent years has been insisting on war until the last Ukrainian, also called for peace. Everything changed overnight after Trump said that peace talks were possible," Nikonov told journalists after an international conference in New Delhi. "Things are changing. The anti-Russian rhetoric is getting quieter."

Touching on the prospects for the Ukrainian settlement, Nikonov pointed out that the terms must be hashed out. "Russia is not proceeding from the notion that hostilities must be terminated immediately. It is proceeding from the need to ensure conditions for lasting peace. And our terms are well-known," he added.

The Russian and US presidents, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, are holding a phone call on Tuesday. Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov confirmed earlier that the call would indeed take place, with the two presidents set to talk about pressing issues, primarily the Ukrainian crisis. Meanwhile, Trump told reporters that he plans to raise territorial and infrastructure concerns in the context of the Ukrainian conflict.

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Military operation in Ukraine

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Yesterday, 21:19

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Zelensky admits Ukraine no longer being invited to NATO

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Russian Volga cities of Saratov, Engels come under most massive drone attack — governor

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Yesterday, 14:29

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Yesterday, 11:41

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