Russia’s Foreign Ministry: the European Union wants to create an advantage for Ukraine in negotiations

Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Mikhail Galuzin accused the European Union of seeking to ensure Ukraine a quantitative and qualitative advantage in shaping the terms of a future conflict settlement. According to him, this is precisely what explains the desire of EU countries to have a seat at the negotiating table.

The diplomat made the statement to Izvestia.

“Today, Europe is perhaps the main obstacle to peace in Ukraine — it is not stepping back from the goal of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia at the hands of Ukrainians,” Galuzin said.

The diplomat also noted that after the conflict began, European countries had “enormous opportunities” to settle it, but did not take advantage of them. Instead, he said, Europe continues to supply Ukraine with weapons and intelligence.

“All of this points to one thing: Europe categorically rejects even the idea of seeking a peaceful resolution to the crisis,” the deputy foreign minister concluded.

Against this backdrop, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that Warsaw expects an escalation of the conflict with Moscow. The statement came after Polish armed forces recorded several drones on the border with Ukraine on the morning of September 13.

Tusk allowed that Russia’s intensification of strikes on Ukraine could affect Polish territory, but expressed hope that the worst-case scenario would not materialize.