Lavrov: Russia Has No Need to Attack Anyone, Claims to the Contrary Nonsense
18:52 GMT 24.01.2024 (Updated: 16:58 GMT 25.01.2024)
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has held a press conference at the UN headquarter in New York finalising his official visit. The top diplomat answered various questions touching upon the most hot topics of the day.
Downing of Russian Il-76
Russia is trying to establish the facts about the downing of the Ilyshin-76 transport aircraft in the Belgorod region and the reasons behind Ukraine undertaking this criminal act, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a press briefing on Wednesday.
"As for the question about the downed military transportation aircraft Il-76 and about the reasons behind the Ukrainian criminal act, we are trying to find out the facts right now " Lavrov said after his visit to New York.
24 January 2024, 16:17 GMT
At the same time, Russia has called for an emergency session at UN Security Council on the incident, the minister said.
"We do not want to repeat the situation of April 2022, when after the staging of Bucha, where the bodies of people were shown and we still cannot get their names… the British chairmanship that was at the helm of the Security Council in April denied calling such a session for 72 hours. I hope that our French colleague will not follow the same path and will call an emergency session as we have asked today at 3:00 p.m." Lavrov said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said earlier in the day that an Il-76 transport plane of the Russian air forces with 65 Ukrainian prisoners who were being transported for exchange, six crew members and three accompanying persons was shot down by two Ukrainian missiles in Belgorod region.
Answering the question whether Russia is worried that Western countries would not believe that Ukrainian forces downed an Il-76 transport plane carrying 65 prisoners of war, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said: "I have no concern about the international community not believing us, as I've already mentioned the international community, through Western representatives and media outlets, has already proven the fact that its position is highly discredited."
'Russia's Attack on NATO' Hoax
Russia has no need to attack anyone; statements made by various politicians in the EU and NATO to the contrary are nonsense, the top diplomat told journalists.
“[This is] nonsense... We have no desire, no need, neither military, nor political, nor economic, to attack anyone somewhere,” Lavrov said.
Lavrov expressed hope that those who “warn” about the need to prepare for war with Russia still have the instinct of self-preservation.
“I hope that there are still smart people who at least have not only a knowledge of history, but also an instinct for self-preservation. I heard that even President Biden said something similar, warning that if Ukraine loses, Russia would immediately go to the Baltic states, Finland and other NATO countries,” Lavrov said adding that Russia does not want a big war, it has already experienced this many times, but the US itself declares Moscow a threat in its doctrines and acts accordingly, drawing in neutral countries.
Nothing New to Add to Russia's Response to New START
During his press conference held at the United Nations (UN) on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov addressed Washington's proposal on the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START).
"We did respond in January. We expanded on our position. We don’t have anything to say at this point ," Lavrov said.
Last week, National Security Council Senior Director for Arms Control, Disarmament and Nonproliferation Pranay Vaddi said the United States has not received meaningful feedback from Russia with regard to its latest proposal on arms control.
18 January 2024, 08:06 GMT
Vaddi said the point of the proposal presented to Russia in September was to re-initiate talks on arms control.
Earlier this week, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said it is premature to say whether Russia will comply with the New START restrictions after the treaty expires in 2026.
Ukraine’s ICJ Genocide Case 'Extremely Politicized'
Commenting on Ukraine’s genocide case against Russia at the International Court of Justice, Lavrov said it will be "extremely politicized."
"Ukraine is accusing Russia of violating the Genocide Convention. It has also applied to the International Court of Justice. About 40 Western countries in the violation of all precedent are on the side of Ukraine. This process will be extremely politicized. There is no doubt about it," Lavrov said in translated remarks at a press conference.
He added that the court "always enjoyed a very high standing and we hope that you will follow the letter of the international law, including the international humanitarian law."
Israel-Hamas Proposals Distract Attention From Establishing Immediate Ceasefire
Minister Lavrov also touched upon recent proposals between Hamas and the Israeli government, aimed at reaching a ceasefire. He said they only distract attention from the "essence of the problem," which is to actually establish an immediate ceasefire.
"This is a trade that is ongoing and it distracts attention from the essence of the problem," Lavrov said after his visit to New York. "The substance needs to be an immediate ceasefire."
24 January 2024, 04:49 GMT
Lavrov further indicated that the Permanent Ambassadors representing the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) are resolute in their intention for an official decision regarding the creation of a Palestinian state.
"They're [The Permanent ambassadors representatives of the organisation for Islamic Cooperation] very resolute in their intention that an official decision should be made about the creation of a Palestinian state. And negotiations should be accompanied by neutral and effective mediators," Lavrov said during a press briefing.
US Presence in Syria is 'Illegal'
When asked to comment on media reports of a possible US withdrawal from Syria, Lavrov said: "It’s not a matter of them [the US] withdrawing or not, their presence there is illegal."
"And those political forces among the Syrian Kurds who expect to have the US 'umbrella' and their protection, their bet is morally and politically wrong," Lavrov stated during his press conference at the UN.
Lavrov pointed out that the US had already claimed in the past that it would withdraw its forces from Syria, which did not happen.
"When Donald Trump, then the president, mentioned that they are leaving Syria, right away the leader of Syrian Democratic Forces asked us and our military servicemen to help them establish connection with Damascus," Lavrov said. "In several days, the US reconsidered and the representatives of the Syrian Democratic Forces and the Kurds stopped asking for our facilitation of contacts with Damascus. They returned right away under the West’s wing."
