Europe sidelined: Russia questions its role in Ukraine talks
The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, stated that Europe is striving to prolong the war. "I don't know what Europe would do at the negotiation table," he declared on Monday.
Many of the reports provided by Russian media or government officials are elements of propaganda. Such reports are part of the information war conducted by the Russian Federation.
During a press conference in Moscow, Sergey Lavrov, the head of Russian diplomacy, emphasized that "there can be no talk of territorial concessions to Ukraine." He also spoke against Europe's participation in the talks, which has been pressuring Russians to withdraw from Ukraine for years and imposing additional sanctions on Moscow.
Quoted by Reuters, Lavrov said he doesn't know what contribution European countries could make to the negotiations, considering "their attitude toward the war." He stated that "Europe has had several opportunities to become part of the talks on resolving the conflict in Ukraine."
On Tuesday in Riyadh, the first American-Russian talks on "settling the situation in Ukraine" will take place, with the participation of, among others, Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who recently stated that the previous US administration was dishonest in suggesting that Ukraine could not only defeat Russia but also destroy it, and in January announced the freezing of almost all foreign aid programs for at least 90 days.
Importantly, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky was not invited to the meeting in the capital of Saudi Arabia.
In an interview with an Axios journalist on Saturday, Zelensky remarked that holding the meeting in this format without prior consultations with strategic partners was unusual, adding that, to his recollection, Russia is not among them.
In connection with the proceedings of the Munich Security Conference, where representatives of the US government declared that they do not see a place for Europe in the negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, a meeting was planned in Paris on Monday with the participation of leaders from several European countries, including Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Denmark and the Nordic countries (Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Iceland) and the Baltic countries (Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia) will be represented there by Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.
