Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow has “not even seen” any Western security guarantees for Ukraine, disputing a claim from Kyiv that Russia accepted US-backed assurances. Speaking at the 11th Ambassadors’ Roundtable in Moscow, Lavrov said Russia “not only did not approve these guarantees - we haven’t seen them,” according to TASS.
He called public speculation on the issue “disrespectful to the negotiations initiated by the American side.”
“The guarantees I’m talking about are not aimed at ensuring indivisible security in this part of the world, but at pumping Ukraine with money and weapons, deploying troops there in order to once again try to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia,” Lavrov added.
On February 28, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine and a member of the negotiating team, Kyrylo Budanov, said on national television that Russia had agreed during the latest stage of truce talks to US security guarantees for Ukraine.
On March 4, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said talks between Russia and Ukraine with US participation are currently paused due to Israel’s and the United States’ military operation in Iran. Meetings under this track had been planned for early March.
