Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s answers to media questions of the Moscow. Kremlin. Putin TV programme, May 26, 2024

Question: I would like to ask a global question, if I may: On the whole, the United States and Western elites cannot help but realise that they are impacting our vital root interests, and that what is happening today has always been unthinkable. Why are they doing this?

Sergey Lavrov: They have realised that it is their goal to prevent Russia from becoming stronger and to contain our country; they are talking seriously that it is necessary to “decolonise” Russia, i.e. to “dismember” it. This is their strategic objective.

They started acting this way after we showed that we will not put up with this and would not allow them to use Ukraine as a direct threat to our security and as a tool for destroying all things Russian on historical Russian territories.

As I understand, these discussions reflect, to a certain extent, their pessimism and a realisation that they will not achieve their goal using ordinary honest international law methods that are applied even during hostilities. This resembles an agony.

Question: Do they believe that, by pitting two nations against each other and unleashing hostilities between two neighbouring nations with blood ties (brothers, sisters and wives), they would force us to quarrel for decades and to drift apart? Is this their goal?

Sergey Lavrov: It appears that this is their goal. They have been doing this for over 20 years, if not 30 years, right after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Their goal was to destroy all things Russian, including the Russian language, and to establish their influence over this territory that they wanted to take over. There were plans to establish military bases on the ground and on the Sea of Azov. They also seriously wanted to stake a claim in Crimea. Those were their plans, and they were counting on this.

As usual, the people of Russia rallied, as it always happens when they wake up the Russian bear. These are not empty words. We have seen this during Russian presidential election, and we are witnessing this during the everyday work of our enterprises and public organisations. We can say the same about Russians who lived on former Ukrainian territories. They are facing threats every day. The Nazi regime continues to use Western weapons for hitting civilian targets, towns and cities. Despite all this, Russians living on liberated territories are staunchly reaffirming their commitment to the Russian World in all its manifestations. They are reaffirming their commitment to Russia with which they were separated for various reasons, as President Vladimir Putin said on many occasions. However, we can see now that they never perceived themselves outside Russia.

As it often happens with Western strategists, the West has obtained a diametrically opposite result.

Question: We can see that the West is making more and more bellicose statements at all levels. Russia is voicing a more specific and cool-headed position. What are the chances that they will unwittingly cross a boundary when their actions would cause Russia to retaliate and hit them hard?

Sergey Lavrov: I can assure you that they will be unable to unwittingly cross this boundary.