Lavrov says Russia is ready to negotiate with Ukraine but will not suspend the military operation

Russia "is ready to negotiate" to achieve "a just and lasting peace" with Ukraine, but "having learned from hard experience, it will not suspend the special military operation for the duration of the negotiations, in whatever format they take place". This was stated by Foreign Minister Serghei Lavrov, quoted by the Ria Novosti agency, during a meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Ukraine.

Lavrov added that an immediate ceasefire, before negotiations, "is what Europe wants, with a simple goal: to gain breathing space and refill the emptied military arsenals of the Kiev regime, which, out of desperation, has long resorted to openly terrorist methods."