Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov confirmed that, during an interview with Sputnik on Thursday, Russia is at war with NATO in Ukraine as he dubbed the alliance's rhetoric that in Ukraine "we are not fighting, but only arming" Ukraine as "ridiculous". The interview covered a variety of topics, ranging from the war in Ukraine to Sino-Russian relations.

War in Ukraine

"If now we are seeking to move the artillery of the Ukrainian Armed Forces to a distance that will not pose a threat to our territories, then the more long-range weapons are supplied to the Kiev regime, the further they will need to be moved away from Russian territory," Lavrov told Sputnik when asked about the extents of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine.

He then explained that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has continually urged the collective-West to supply Kiev with long-range missiles. Lavrov even referenced the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov who had warned, earlier on Monday, that such weapons would “directly increase the level of escalation” of the war in Ukraine.

And when asked whether the war in Ukraine could further escalate, the top Russian diplomat stressed "the fact that the West cannot calm down - and, as in the infamous fairy tales, with every step it gets stuck even more in the swamp - this plays an important role in the course of the [Russian special military] operation," adding that "This escalation, you are absolutely right, is snowballing."

In the past, Lavrov recalled, Russian President Vladimir Putin "explained in detail the goals, reasons, and inevitability of our special military operation. And he did this not just suddenly, but after long eight years, even more, than eight years, starting with his Munich speech in 2007."

"For many years, he explained to the West that they rule in the wrong direction and undermine everything that they themselves have pledged to uphold, including the indivisibility of security in Europe," the FM highlighted as he reiterated what has been previously noted by Russian officials that "the whole of NATO is fighting against us, and all those allegations and incantations that ‘we are not fighting, but only arming’ - this is ridiculous.”

With the anniversary of the special operation nearing, Lavrov was asked about Russia's plans to mark this date. The Foreign Minister noted that there are many things that need to be remembered and demonstrated, Lavrov explained, that would depict how the US establishes its hegemony. 

"We are preparing sort of a report of what happened this year, what we managed to discover, and this is not only the US military biological programs, from which they are trying to disown, they lie, as always, and not only the direct participation of the United States in the explosions at Nord Stream," Lavrov said.

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A possibility of peace

According to Lavrov, Russia has not refused to negotiate with Ukraine. Any such accusation, he claimed, was a lie. 

"Our diplomacy has things to do — to constantly, daily explain what is happening, to debunk lies, especially the lies that are now being heard about our refusal to negotiate [with Ukraine]," the Russian foreign minister said.

According to Sputnik, Lavrov said that Russia has not tried to persuade Kiev to resume talks with Moscow. He also added that in his opinion, even Zelensky does not feel like an independent leader capable of making negotiation decisions since he is being manipulated as a pawn by the West.

Moscow has frequently stated that it is ready to resume the talks, which were put on hold in April 2022 and were later annulled by Kiev. He further recalled that Putin declared, earlier last year, that Moscow is “ready to negotiate with all participants in this process about some acceptable solutions, but this is their business - it's not we who refuse negotiations.”

To Lavrov, as per Sputnik, peace is achieved through strength. He argued "I am definitely for peace. I am for peace. I do not remember who said: 'If you want peace, prepare for war.' I do not share this philosophy. I share the idea, which I would formulate as follows: 'If you want peace, be ready to always defend yourself."

Nord Stream and US interests 

Lavrov said that the statements made by Victoria Nuland, the US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, concerning the Nord Stream pipeline explosions show that Washington was complicit in the incident.

Nuland said last week, that "the [US] administration is very gratified to know that Nord Stream 2" would no longer be operational.

Based on that, Lavrov even went further and said, "And this is not only the direct participation of the United States in the explosions of the Nord Streams. Now Mrs. Nuland has, in fact, turned herself in.”

Full #Video: #SergeyLavrov's Interview With #Sputnik https://t.co/RLtZZkwLhw pic.twitter.com/673hcYz2hW

— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) February 2, 2023

On a different note, the Russian diplomat claimed that the US hinders and obstructs the work of dispute settlement bodies within the World Trade Organization (WTO) as it seeks to continue to attempt to contain China.

"There is no quorum," Lavrov said, "this has been happening for years."

The Russian FM also emphasized in his interview with Sputnik that Sino-Russian relations are beneficial to both countries and do not place Moscow in a subservient position.
 
“There are already enough people who want to scare Russia with Сhina," Lavrov said, and moreover noted that this is correlated to "the desire to prevent us [Russian and China] from cooperating and coordinating either in the economy or in international affairs."
 
Read more: Russia operation aimed at derailing West's ominous plans: Lavrov