Russia and US will have to ‘clean up' after Biden
Moscow and Washington need to 'clean up the legacy' left by the former US President Joe Biden's administration that ruined the ties between the two states, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.
Speaking at the Russian State Duma on Wednesday, having returned from talks with US diplomats in the Saudi capital on Tuesday, Lavrov described the meeting in Riyadh as a first step toward rebuilding relations between the countries. The bilateral negotiations were led by Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and aimed to lay the groundwork for ending the Ukraine conflict and normalizing ties between Russia and the US.
'We have started to move away from the brink of the abyss to which the Biden administration had led us, but these are only the first steps,' Lavrov told lawmakers, commenting on the talks.
'For now, we need to 'clean up' the legacy of the Biden administration, which did everything to destroy… the foundation of a long-term partnership between our countries,' he added. According to the diplomat, 'the movement towards normalizing relations in all areas is beginning.'
'There is, at least, a declared readiness to start on this course. And to resolve not only the Ukraine crisis, but to create conditions for the restoration and expansion of partnership in trade, economic and geopolitical spheres,' Lavrov stated. He noted that Washington's representatives expressed marked interest in removing 'artificially created' obstacles to potential joint initiatives with Russia in many areas, including economic and foreign policy.
Among other things, the sides agreed to restore embassy staffing and form high-level teams to begin work on the potential Ukraine peace settlement.
'We welcome this,' Lavrov said, noting that the countries could eventually return to the state of cooperation they had prior to the Ukraine conflict and the West's sanctions war on Russia.
'There will always be problems, but the main thing is to meet, listen and hear one another, make decisions that will be realistic with regard to the partners they concern,' he stated.
Tuesday's negotiations have been described as 'truly monumental' in Washington.
Following the talks, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also acknowledged that the West would need to address the sanctions imposed on Russia in order to reach a lasting solution to the conflict and to restore relations. Later on Tuesday, US President Donald Trump told journalists he felt 'much more confident' about the prospects of a lasting peace between Russia and Ukraine amid the budding rapprochement with Moscow.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
37 minutes ago
- Russia Today
US silent on Russia's missile moratorium proposal
The US has so far ignored Moscow's call to impose limits on its deployment of intermediate-range missiles, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said. Speaking at the Future Forum 2050 on Monday, Lavrov stated that Washington had not responded to an offer Putin had made to establish reciprocal moratoriums after the collapse of the Cold War-era Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. 'It's already clear they will not react to our call, in the absence of the treaty, to establish two parallel, non-interlinked moratoriums,' he said. The INF Treaty, signed in 1987 by the US and the Soviet Union, banned land-based ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers. Washington withdrew from the deal in 2019, citing alleged violations by Moscow. Russia has denied the claims, accusing the US of developing the banned missiles, but pledged not to deploy such systems unless the US did so first. Last year, the US announced that it would field the multipurpose Standard Missile-6 (SM-6), the Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile, and a hypersonic weapon that is still in development in 'episodic deployments' in Germany starting in 2026. The two systems would have been banned by the INF Treaty, assuming they were deployed on land. Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov signaled that Russia would not be constrained by any limitations if it ends its self-imposed moratorium. 'One way or another, Russia will have to respond to NATO's expansionist and aggressive actions,' he explained. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov also noted that Moscow would soon be forced to walk back its current policy. 'Russia's restraint in the post-INF period was not appreciated by the US and its allies and was not met with reciprocity,' he said. 'We have openly and directly stated that the unilateral moratorium is approaching its logical end.' He also rebuked the US for an apparent reluctance to alter its course. 'We do not see any fundamental change, let alone reversal, in US plans to forward-deploy ground-based intermediate and shorter-range missiles in various regions,' he said. 'On the contrary, practical steps taken by the US military have convinced us that such activity will only intensify.'
Russia Today
an hour ago
- Russia Today
Lavrov reaffirms support for Russia-India-China trilateral format
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has once again expressed his support for the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral dialogue format. 'When President Putin became president, the very first three-party summit meeting between Russia, China, and India was held,' he said at the Future Forum 2050 in Moscow on Monday. 'About 20 meetings of foreign ministries took place, followed by dozens at different platforms, including meetings between the ministries of transport and economy and ever since the multipolarity is gaining momentum.' These comments come days after he said that Moscow had a 'genuine interest' in reviving the RIC trilateral dialogue, citing recent de-escalation along the India-China border as a timely opportunity. 'Now that, as I understand it, an understanding is being reached between India and China on how to calm the border situation, I believe the time has come to revive the RIC trio,' he said at a Eurasian security conference on Thursday. China and India have been engaged in a prolonged military standoff along their contested Himalayan border, the Line of Actual Control (LAC), following a fatal confrontation in the Galwan Valley in June 2020. Despite ongoing tensions, the two nations have conducted numerous rounds of negotiations, and although some areas of disagreement persist, officials have recently noted signs of de-escalation, accompanied by sustained military and diplomatic dialogue. On Monday, Lavrov said that Western powers perceive multipolarity as a threat to their longstanding influence and control, rather than an opportunity to foster a more equitable society. 'Instead of an opportunity for more fairness and equality it sees a threat to its historic dominance,' he added. Russia has long advocated multipolarity as the way forward. At the Eurasian security conference last week, Lavrov also voiced concerns over NATO's purported efforts to draw India into its anti-China strategies. 'I have no doubt that our Indian friends – and I say this based on confidential conversations with them – clearly see this provocation,' he said.
Russia Today
02-06-2025
- Russia Today
Ukraine ‘a terrorist state'
A senior Russian lawmaker has accused Ukrainian intelligence services of orchestrating an explosion that damaged a bridge in Russia's Bryansk region, describing the incident as an act of terrorism aimed at intimidating civilians and provoking Moscow ahead of potential talks. On Saturday evening, as a result of an explosion, a bridge fell in front of a moving passenger train moving at high speed, derailing it. The crash killed seven people and injured 97 others. Several hours later, a railway bridge collapsed under a moving freight train in Kursk Region, wounding the driver and two of his assistants. 'This is clearly the work of Ukrainian special services. Everything points to Ukraine being a terrorist state,' Andrey Kartapolov, head of the Russian State Duma's defense committee, told Russian news outlet SHOT, on Sunday. Kartapolov said the blasts had no military significance but were designed to 'harden' Russia's stance and spread fear among the population. He added that Russian security services would investigate the incident and determine the circumstances. 'All of this is aimed at escalating Russia's position and provoking aggression before negotiations, as well as to intimidate people. But it won't work,' he said. The Investigative Committee said in a statement on Sunday that the bridges had been 'blown up' in both incidents. Later that same day, drones targeted military airfields in Murmansk Region in the country's north, in Ivanovo and Ryazan regions in western Russia, and in Irkutsk Region in Siberia and Amur Region in the Far East. Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky touted the 'absolutely brilliant result' saying that the strikes had been prepared for more a year and a half and targeted Russia's strategic aviation fleet. 'In total, 117 drones were used in the operation,' he said in a video message posted on X. Drones were reportedly smuggled into Russia and launched remotely off the back of trucks. In response to Kiev's raids, Russia has launched several retaliatory strikes targeting Ukraine's defense industry facilities, as well as military assembly points and warehouses. While Kiev has not officially claimed responsibility for the collapses of two bridges that caused train derailments in Russia, Ukrainian opposition MP Artyom Dmitruk said the incidents were 'another step toward peace according to Zelensky's formula,' referring to his proposed peace plan. 'Let me remind you, negotiations are scheduled for June 2,' the lawmaker added. The second round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks begins in Istanbul, Türkiye, on Monday. The two countries held their first direct negotiations in three years in May, where they agreed to submit detailed ceasefire proposals.
