Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov alleged Tuesday (Jan 14) that the US was on a mission to turn the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QSD)—a group of India, Japan, Australia, and the United States—into a political and military bloc. He added that his "Indian friends" were fully aware of the USA's plans.

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Lavrov was speaking during an annual press conference designed to summarise the work of Russian diplomacy.

The Russian foreign minister also accused Washington, DC, of seeking to disable the TurkStream gas pipeline, through which Russian gas flows to Turkey and Europe.

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Also read: FM Lavrov says Russia will ditch its unilateral missile moratorium

This comes a day after Russia said Monday that it had intercepted and shot down nine Ukrainian drones fired at part of the infrastructure of TurkStream, an act that Russia dubbed "energy terrorism.”

On Trump peace talks

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Lavrov also confirmed Russia's willingness to cooperate with US President-elect Donald Trump's peace initiatives on Ukraine.

Also read: China's new barges to invade Taiwan: a step towards war?

He said that Russia fully acknowledged that Trump was aware of the reality on the ground. Incoming US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz earlier reinforced this sentiment, arguing that diplomatic efforts were vital for conflict resolution.

US sanctions on NIS

Lavrov said Russia was in talks with its "Serbian friends" over the future of Serbian oil company NIS.

Earlier, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said Friday (Jan 10) that Russia's Gazprom Neft will be given 45 days to exit ownership of NIS following US sanctions. Gazprom Neft currently holds a 50 per cent stake in NIS, whereas Gazprom holds 6.15 per cent of the shares. 29.87 per cent of shares are held by the government of Serbia. 

(With inputs from agencies)