Lavrov: Europe wants to “freeze” the conflict and deploy troops to Ukraine

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has stated that the real goal of European leaders is not negotiations with Russia but saving the Zelensky regime and preserving Ukraine as a springboard for continuing the fight. The position is set out in his article “Ukraine, Europe and global security,” published on the ministry’s website.

“The real goal of European leaders is not negotiations with Russia, but saving the Zelensky regime, preserving it as a springboard for continuing the fight against us,” the minister wrote.

According to Lavrov, European capitals are pushing for the earliest possible ceasefire in order to prevent the collapse of Ukraine’s Armed Forces at the front, “freeze” the conflict without eliminating its root causes, and immediately deploy military contingents from the British-French “coalition of the willing” to Ukraine.

The minister also noted that Europe continues to pursue expansion — developing Ukraine and Moldova, as well as drawing in Armenia. Lavrov recalled that NATO has already expanded eastward by admitting Finland and Sweden, and that Ukraine is viewed as a future “strike fist” of European armed forces independent of the United States and NATO.

In Lavrov’s assessment, such a policy creates serious risks for global security: a direct clash between NATO and Russia could, in his words, escalate into a nuclear conflict with catastrophic consequences.

Earlier, Zelensky said on the sidelines of the G7 summit that last winter had been terrible for Ukraine and that negotiations with Russia should take place before it begins. According to him, Ukraine does not want to endure another such winter. Zelensky also noted that he had been ready for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva in February and believes that the next negotiations could take place in Switzerland, Turkey, the United States, or one of the Middle Eastern countries.

The Kremlin previously stated that Turkey is ready to host negotiations on Ukraine.