US doesn't want to end Ukraine conflict behind Zelensky's 'formula' talk

The United States is not willing to end the conflict in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with the International Affairs magazine on August 19, which is why the country maintains talks on resolving the conflict based on the “formula” of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, TASS news agency reported on August 19.

When asked about the feasibility of the view of many politicians that ending the conflict in Ukraine depends on an agreement between Russia and the US, the senior Russian diplomat pointed out, “such logic implicitly assumes that Ukraine is a puppet of the US and all issues need to be resolved with the Americans.”

“However, the problem is that the United States has no intention of ending the conflict. As I said, their officially stated goal is to inflict a ‘strategic defeat’ on Russia and weaken us as much as possible in the military, economic and political spheres. This is why Washington has repeatedly insisted that negotiations on resolving this issue should be conducted only on Ukraine’s terms, that is, on the basis of Vladimir Zelensky’s ‘peace formula’,” the Russian Foreign Minister stressed.

Mr Lavrov noted that it was “an overly rigid and useless stance”.

“We cannot be expected to accept that our core security interests will be violated and that Russians and Russian speakers in our new territories and in areas controlled by the armed forces of Ukraine will continue to face injustice,” Lavrov added.

“Another thing the West needs to realize is that Russia will defend its people and vital interests by any means necessary,” the diplomat said. “It is best that our opponents realize as soon as possible that a confrontation with Russia will lead to nothing, and that they need to switch to more civilized, political and diplomatic methods to ensure a balance of interests.”

According to TASS, the Russian Foreign Minister also emphasized that in December 2021, Moscow made "a very serious effort" to convey its concerns to Western capitals, sending them two draft agreements related to security measures with the United States and measures to ensure security with NATO member states.

"However, our initiative was immediately and arrogantly rejected. Instead of engaging in negotiations, they focused their efforts on increasing the production of weapons and ammunition to supply Ukraine, further escalating tensions in the region," Lavrov concluded.