The key facts
- Lavrov allowed for agreements with the US if the proposals by Witkoff and Kushner are economically advantageous
- Political concessions are ruled out; one should not count on Washington's goodwill
- Earlier, Witkoff and Kushner met with Putin in the Kremlin for about three hours, then traveled to Kyiv
Lavrov's statement
Russia is ready to consider economically advantageous proposals from the US, but does not intend to make political concessions for their sake. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said this at a meeting with university graduates who had newly joined the diplomatic service. According to him, Moscow will hear out the initiatives of the US president's special envoy Steven Witkoff and Jared Kushner, and if they prove financially attractive, the Russian side does not rule out agreements. 'We will see what they propose. If they propose something that is economically and financially beneficial to us, then why not? But this must be done without any political concessions on our part and without expecting political goodwill that will 'carry us through' in all world affairs. We must rely only on ourselves,' Lavrov emphasized.
On the American political tradition
Lavrov recalled that in the US, each new president may reverse the decisions of his predecessor. In his view, this tradition gives the American authorities additional bargaining opportunities, so in building relations with the United States, Russia must rely primarily on its own strength.
Context of the American delegation's visit
According to Life.ru, Witkoff and Kushner earlier visited Moscow and then traveled to Kyiv. In early September, the Washington representatives held a meeting with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin that lasted three hours and ten minutes. Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov described the conversation as substantive and constructive. In addition to resolving the Ukrainian conflict, the sides discussed economic cooperation and possible major joint projects. After that, the American delegation headed to Kyiv via the Polish city of Rzeszow. Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, who saw the guests off at the airport, highly praised the talks.
