Lavrov says Russia is 'interested' in ending Ukraine conflict 'as soon as possible'

Moscow is "interested" to end the ongoing war with Ukraine "as soon as possible", Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday (April 17) during a news conference with Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira in Brasilia.

Lavrov met with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and thanked Brazil for its efforts to resolve the conflict. The meeting took place amid the West criticising Lula's recent remarks on the defence support for Ukraine from the United States.

During his China visit, Lula had said that the US needs to stop "encouraging" the war and said that the West needs to start talking about peace.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Lavrov praised Lula's efforts in attempting to end the war by urging to promote of diplomatic channels to de-escalate the conflict. Before starting his visit, Lula had proposed creating a group of countries to mediate in the war. He had even said that he would discuss it with Beijing, but there was no update on the same.

ALSO READ |Russian strikes kill father and daughter in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia

While mentioning the interest to end the war and the conflict, Lavrov reiterated Russia's stance that any diplomatic solution must acknowledge the realitiesof its unilateral annexation of four Ukrainian provinces.

Lavrov said, "We are interested in the Ukrainian conflict ending as soon as possible. We have already announced in detail the reasons for what is happening and the very goals that we are pursuing in this regard."

"They consist primarily in guaranteeing the absence of any threats to the military security of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine, and the West has been implementing such plans for many years. And the second task, of course, is to protect the lives and legal rights of the Russian-speaking population of the east and south of Ukraine," he added.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has often said that for it, the true meaning of peace would include Kyiv taking back Crimea and Russia giving up the occupied regions.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said last week: "Real peace means restoring the internationally recognized borders of Ukraine. Real peace means a safe homeland for the targeted people in the Ukrainian Crimea."

(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.