Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday that his country has no desire to “take revenge” on the West and that Moscow will welcome countries that are ready to once again cooperate with Russia.
Speaking to students of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Lavrov said that Russia has no desire to take revenge or vent its anger on anyone, expressing Moscow’s view that anger, as well as the desire for revenge, are bad advisers.
“When our former Western partners come to their senses and wish to come to the Russian Federation and work here again, we will not push them away, but we will see under what conditions this can be done,” Lavrov said.
He emphasized that from now on, it is necessary to resolve issues concerning the conditions under which the West can cooperate with Moscow in a way that does not create risks for key areas of the Russian economy.
Lavrov stated that Russia is ready for dialogue and to sincerely cooperate with everyone, which, as he said, was clearly demonstrated during the talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump in Alaska last month.
The summit between Putin and Trump in the city of Anchorage on August 15th was the first direct meeting of the Russian and U.S. leaders since the beginning of the war between Russia and Ukraine more than three and a half years ago.
About the summit in Alaska, Lavrov said that last month’s meeting showed the current U.S. administration’s understanding of the need to resolve all issues based on respect for mutual national interests, including the war in Ukraine, regarding which he also noted Washington’s attention to the need for “removing the root causes” of the conflict.
Lavrov also said that Russia is interested in equal cooperation with all countries, including the U.S., with which, as he said, Moscow has prospects for cooperation, especially in areas such as the Arctic, liquefied natural gas, and space.
“They (the U.S.) are showing a similar interest,” he said, adding that Russia and the U.S. can also establish cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence.
