The United States called the condition for the conversation between Lavrov and Blinken

According to the official representative of the US State Department, the condition for negotiations between the heads of the two departments may be a “reduction in the level of violence” and an improvement in the humanitarian situation in Ukraine During the meeting of Anthony Blinken (left) and Sergey Lavrov,held in December 2021

The United States believes that a conversation between the heads of the US and Russian diplomatic departments, Anthony Blinken and Sergey Lavrov, "would not be constructive" under the current conditions, but it can take place provided that it helps "reduce the level of violence in Ukraine." This was stated at a press conference by US State Department spokesman Ned Price.

“If there are the right conditions and if we believe that a conversation between them [Blinken and Lavrov] will help reduce the level of violence or improve the humanitarian situation for the Ukrainians, then this will be done,” he said.

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Blinken last spoke to Lavrov on 15 February. At that time, the two diplomats, among other things, discussed proposals for security guarantees that Moscow had handed over to the US and NATO. Lavrov noted "the inadmissibility of aggressive rhetoric pumped up by Washington and its closest allies" and called for a pragmatic dialogue on the entire range of issues raised by Russia.

Lavrov said that Russia does not want war in Europe Politics

Russia has been conducting a military operation to denazify and demilitarize Ukraine since February 24. Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the time of the announcement that NATO's eastward expansion was of "particular concern and concern." In his opinion, the alliance has become "an instrument of foreign policy" of Washington.

Russia opposes Ukraine's plans to join NATO. In particular, this requirement became one of the key ones during the negotiations on security guarantees with NATO and the United States, which Moscow initiated in December 2021. Negotiations on this issue were not successful, as the alliance stated that this requirement was not acceptable.

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The United States condemned the special operation in Ukraine and imposed sanctions against Moscow. The restrictions included foreign exchange reserves, financial and industrial companies, as well as high-ranking officials and the military. Lavrov himself also got on the SDN list: all his assets (if any) in US jurisdiction will be blocked.

Russia called Western sanctions illegal and repeatedly introduced mirror measures, including against Blinken and other top US officials.