MOSCOW, January 14. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Friday said the United States is using NATO for the sole purpose of retaining influence over Western countries.
It’s hard to believe it when Americans say they want to discuss important issues with Russia in consultations with their allies, he said at a news conference to sum up Russian diplomacy last year.
"That’s not a completely honest statement about the situation," Lavrov said. "They say they can’t decide without the allies, but Washington needs NATO essentially just as an instrument of self-validation as the leader of the West, just to hold them all in compliance with its policy and designs."
The creation of AUKUS and the treatment of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline are vivid examples of how the US feels about the interests of its allies, the minister said.
"Are you aware how France reacted to the behind-the-scenes deals of the Anglo-Saxons?" he said.
Germany, a US ally, "has to beg so that sanctions aren’t imposed" on Nord Stream 2, Lavrov said.
Lavrov said the US tore up the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty and the Treaty on Open Skies without consulting with the allies.
"That’s why I don’t see any convincing reasons why the US can’t play a leading role," he said.