Talks or ways? Russia accuses West of obstructing efforts; Lavrov: ‘Western countries trying to block Ukraine peace talks’

Russian international minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday accused Western nations of intentionally obstructing peace negotiations to finish the battle in Ukraine, at the same time as diplomatic momentum appeared to falter.“They’re just looking for a pretext to block negotiations,” Lavrov stated in an interview with state broadcaster Rossiya, clips of which had been launched on Telegram.The remarks come as US President Donald Trump has pushed for a bilateral assembly between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin. While Trump has promoted the initiative, Moscow and Kyiv have exchanged blame over why such a gathering has not materialized.Lavrov criticised Zelenskyy for “obstinately insisting, setting conditions, demanding an immediate meeting at all costs” with Putin. He additional accused Kyiv of “attempts to disrupt the process that was laid down by Presidents Putin and Trump, which has yielded very good results.”On Friday, Lavrov instructed reporters that “no meeting” between Putin and Zelenskyy was at present deliberate. Zelenskyy, nonetheless, accused Moscow of trying to “wriggle out” of holding direct talks, whereas sustaining that Ukraine would solely agree as soon as its allies safe binding safety ensures to forestall future Russian aggression.Moscow has dismissed such circumstances, insisting that no dialogue of safety ensures is feasible with out Russia’s participation, and calling the potential deployment of European troops in Ukraine “absolutely unacceptable.”The warfare, now stretching into its third yr, continues to take a look at diplomatic channels as each side commerce accusations over who’s stopping dialogue.