Russia remains open to dialogue: FM

Russia does not believe that the settlement of the Ukraine crisis is in the hands of Moscow and Washington alone, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in his latest interview with US journalist Tucker Carlson, reaffirming that Russia remains open to dialogue.

The US talk show host Carlson claimed to have recorded a "fascinating" interview with Lavrov on Wednesday. In the interview video released Friday on the official website of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Lavrov discussed Russia-US relations, the Ukraine crisis and the broader geopolitical landscape. He also warned of nuclear escalation risks in Ukraine.

"Moscow is ready for any development of events around Ukraine, but prefers a peaceful settlement, taking into account Russia's security interests," the senior diplomat said.

Lavrov expressed grave concerns over certain rhetoric by some officials in the Pentagon and NATO about potential limited nuclear strikes on Russia without involving US territories in nuclear conflicts, emphasizing that any such actions could spiral into uncontrollable escalation.

The foreign minister said "Russia's military doctrine says that the most important thing is to avoid a nuclear war," and referred to the joint statement of the leaders of the five nuclear-weapon states in January 2022, which stated that "a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought".

He reiterated Russia's long-standing opposition to NATO's eastward expansion, blaming the West for ignoring Russia's security concerns.

Lavrov noted that a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine is possible only if Kyiv abandons its plans to join NATO, closes Western military bases in the country and cancels exercises involving foreign troops. The West will have to take into account the realities on the ground.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Friday that China's position on the Ukraine crisis has been consistent. Beijing has always believed that dialogues and negotiations are the only viable way to resolve the crisis, and the international community must create conditions for both sides of the conflict to resume direct talks, Lin said at a regular news conference in Beijing.

Only when all major powers contribute positively can there be a glimmer of hope for a cease-fire in this conflict, Lin said.

Xinhua contributed to the story.