Russia yet to reach agreement with US on key issues on resolving Ukraine crisis: Sergey Lavrov

Amid escalating exchange of rocket and drone strikes, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that after several rounds of talks with US negotiators, the two sides have so far failed to reach an agreement on key aspects of resolving the Ukraine crisis. In an interview published by the Kommersant business daily on Tuesday, Lavrov said that Moscow was open to continuing negotiations with the US because it sees a clear difference between President Donald Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden.

Last Friday, Trump’s close aide Steve Witkoff had travelled to Russia’s former imperial capital St. Petersburg for the third but first publicised meeting with President Vladimir Putin.

“Unlike EU countries and the UK, the Trump administration is trying to get to the bottom of the issue and most importantly understand the root cause of the Ukraine conflict,” Lavrov said.

The US and the European Union (EU) “organised and funded the anti-constitutional coup” in Kiev in 2014, which triggered the confrontation with Russia, he added.

Lavrov pointed to the “common sense” prevailing in the Trump administration and willingness to conclude mutually beneficial deals where the interests of the two nations coincide.

He, however, said that Putin’s Russia will not allow it to be taken for a ride. “We know perfectly well what a mutually beneficial deal looks like – something we have never rejected – and what a deal designed to lure us into another trap looks like.”

Lavrov blamed the Biden administration for the “death of globalisation” and claimed it weaponised the financial system by imposing sanctions on Russia.