Russian Foreign Ministry Statement Issued Prior to Lavrov-Blinken Meeting

Jan. 21, 2022 (EIRNS)—The Russian Foreign Ministry today issued a statement, prior to the meeting between Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, addressing the U.S.-Russian bilateral relationship and pointing to aspects of U.S. foreign policy it says should be corrected. As quoted by TASS, the statement notes that “either we agree on a more or less positive agenda that also takes Russia’s priorities into account, or the degree of confrontation that is already excessive ramps up even further. But if U.S. policy remains unchanged, we will staunchly oppose Washington’s hostile actions in the mutual containment process.” It continues that the two nations have no issues that cannot be resolved, and what’s required is for both to create an atmosphere of trust, as this is in their common interest. “The Americans must carry out serious work on mistakes, draw the appropriate conclusions from their failed attempts to interfere in our internal affairs and substantially correct their behavior,” Russia is not creating “spheres of influence” as Washington claims, but defending its legitimate interests.

The statement also recommended that it’s time that

“our American colleagues understand that Washington’s dual containment policy towards Moscow and Beijing is completely outdated and offers no good prospects for the U.S. The Americans would do more good for themselves and the entire world if they abandoned their arrogant claim for global dominance and engaged in an equal and honest dialogue with Russia, China and other major players in order to search for balanced solutions to pressing global security and development issues. We are ready for such work.”

The Moscow-Beijing relationship doesn’t depend on the “global political situation,” the statement asserted, because it is based on respect for each other’s sovereignty, political culture and on the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs.

“It’s crucial that Moscow and Beijing share the same or similar approaches to resolving key global issues. This is why our countries play a stabilizing role in global politics. Russia and China seek to boost [their] strategic partnership based on objective historical logic and the vast mutual potential that the two countries have. Another thing to remember is that there is a stable social consensus in Russia and China on the prospects, scale and depth of bilateral cooperation.”