They Are Certainly Preparing the Ground: Zakharova

Western countries are preparing the ground for a new opportunity for negotiations with Russia on the issue of Ukraine within the framework of the UN Security Council meetings. This statement was made by Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

“Not only the representatives of the overwhelming majority of the world, namely Kuwait, Bahrain, Iran, and Hungary, have met with Sergey Lavrov, but also the Swiss Foreign Minister on his own initiative. Here is the answer to the question: they are certainly preparing the ground,” Zakharova said during an interview with Sputnik radio.

She added that the West is accusing Russia of sabotaging the negotiations, organizing its own formats, but concludes that this is a method that does not work. “Zelensky's 'peace formula' will not have any progress. It is not a peace formula. Everything that supported it—conferences, summits, forums—has only reached a dead end,” emphasized Zakharova.

Earlier, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, whose term expired on May 20, announced during a press conference that Russian representatives should participate in a second conference on the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict. He stated that preparations for the peaceful summit are expected to be completed in November.