Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that all G20 nations welcomed recent US-Russia talks in Riyadh, which aimed to restore dialogue and address the ongoing Ukraine conflict. Lavrov made the remarks at a press conference on Friday, following the two-day G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, that began on February 20.
Speaking to journalists, Lavrov said “All welcomed our meeting,” while acknowledging that the Riyadh talks marked only the start of dialogue.
The high-level discussions in the Saudi capital earlier this week involved Lavrov, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and other officials from both sides. The talks focused on reestablishing diplomatic ties between Moscow and Washington and potential paths toward resolving the Ukraine conflict.
Both sides described the talks as productive, with Lavrov stating that the delegations worked “quite successfully” on improving relations. Rubio called the meeting “the first step of a long and difficult journey but an important one.”
As a result of the talks, both sides agreed to lay the groundwork for restoring US-Russian bilateral ties and working towards a resolution to the Ukraine conflict. They also committed to organizing a summit between their respective leaders in the future.
Addressing reporters on Friday, Lavrov noted that the way certain “tragicomic characters leading the Brussels bureaucracy and NATO reacted to the Riyadh meeting speaks for itself.”
The foreign minister further argued that only “unhealthy people” would view diplomatic engagement between two global powers as a “betrayal of Western interests.”
Both the EU and Ukraine, which were excluded from the talks in Saudi Arabia, condemned the meeting. Vladimir Zelensky described the talks as “disreputable,” accusing Washington of “helping Putin get out of years of isolation” and portraying Russia as “a victim.”
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas suggested that Moscow emerged as the biggest winner from the talks, stressing that any peace deal regarding Ukraine has to involve the Europeans and Ukrainians to be effective.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Moscow “has never refused contact with EU nations or withdrawn from negotiations with Ukraine.” He noted that it was Kiev that pulled out of the Istanbul talks in the spring of 2022 and later banned its officials from engaging in any dialogue with Moscow.
The Russian president reiterated that Moscow is ready to return to the peace process at any time, but said the decision ultimately lies with Kiev and Brussels.
