TEHRAN, October 4. /TASS/. Europe viewing Russia as a threat shows that Russia is a power that must be reckoned with, while all it needs from the West is cooperation and normal dialogue, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev told the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) in an interview on Saturday.
The Middle East conflict has prompted much more countries to consider seeking nuclear weapon, the politician noted as he highlighted the unprecedented level of relations between Russia and Iran.
TASS has compiled key statements from the senior Russian security official.
On Ukraine conflict
Conditions toward a Ukraine peace settlement are "well-known," Medvedev said: "They were first outlined by our country’s President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with senior officials of the Russian Foreign Ministry."
Ukraine will need to embrace a neutral, non-nuclear status, reject its nationalist policy course and recognize the four new Russian regions to achieve a long-lasting political settlement, he stressed: "These primarily include a neutral, non-nuclear and independent status for Ukraine."
"Secondly, the current Ukrainian regime will need to abandon its nationalist course and <…> its ban on all things Russian," Medvedev continued. "And thirdly, what is enshrined in Russia’s Constitution should be transferred over to Russian jurisdiction, namely lands in Donbass and some other new regions. That is Russian sovereignty [over those lands] should be restored," he explained.
According to Medvedev, this could underpin a diplomatic settlement process. "If this does not happen, we will do it militarily," he warned.
On European vision of Russia
Europe viewing Russia as a threat shows that Russia is a power that must be reckoned with, Medvedev maintained: "If they view us as a threat, this at least shows that Russia has power, and they will have to reckon with us. We do not threaten anyone in Europe or in the West."
All Russia needs from the West is calm cooperation and normal dialogue, he emphasized.
According to Medvedev, Europeans are using the illusory "Russian threat" as a pretext to manipulate public opinion, gain votes in elections and channel money into military budgets.
Europe itself destroyed cooperation with Russia and is now living with the consequences of this decision, the senior Russian security official said: "We used to have active economic ties. But they destroyed everything. And they are to blame. They imposed sanctions. They rejected cooperation. <…> Let them enjoy it."
On response to sanctions
A total of more than 33,000 sanctions have been imposed on Russia - almost the amount of restrictions against Iran: "In a situation where our countries are subjected to unlawful sanctions, we should find formats of cooperation in the financial sphere," Medvedev said.
On security situation in Middle East
Medvedev described the situation in security in the Middle East as "extremely poor."
The Middle East conflict has prompted much more countries to consider obtaining nuclear weapons, he argued. "The attempt to change the foundations of the political regime in Iran by force and essentially withdraw it from the active players has actually led to much more countries weighing possessing nuclear weapons," the politician said as he criticized the US policy course here as reckless.
Meanwhile, Iran plays a key role in ensuring security in the Strait of Hormuz, in terms of geography and international law, and it has offered quite an effective response to threats from Washington, he opined: "Iran has positioned itself quite well and it has responded to the Americans’ threats, using alternative weapons that I would describe as thermonuclear. I mean the Strait of Hormuz."
On multipolarity
The key lesson to be learned from the Middle East conflict is that the world has to move toward multipolarity, the Russian politician argued: "All this [situation in the Middle East] means that the world is tired of the unipolar nature of a range of decisions being made by Western countries and of how they are imposing the so-called rules-based order, which is their own order."
The world has to move "toward multipolarity, taking the opinion of all countries, not just of one player, into account," he explained.
On Russia-Iran relations
The relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia "have reached unprecedented heights," Medvedev noted.
Russia and Iran are developing joint activities in defense and attach great importance to this, he concluded.
