Lavrov: Our western neighbours have racist instincts vis a vis Russia

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*Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s news conference following the High-Level Week of the 77th Session of the UN General Assembly, New York, September 24, 2022*

*Question:* We’ve heard Russia’s explanation for its invasion of Ukraine. But could you tell us what the endgame is? Is the endgame to overthrow the government in Kiev? And how much pressure is Russia coming under from China to end this war?

*Sergey Lavrov:* The goals of the operation have been set in President Putin’s statement on the 24th of February.

Imagine for a second that Ireland prohibited English in schools, in communications, in movie theatres, or that Belgium did the same to the French language, or Finland to the Swedish language. Can you imagine any of these developments? I can’t. But it would have been considered outrageous immediately, and there would have been a scandal and action – I have not the slightest doubt – not to allow this to happen.

But in the case of Ukraine, for long, long years, the policy to eliminate anything Russian never drew any attention from media outlets in the West, and not only media outlets. We have been presenting these cases and calling for some action in the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the UN, in relations between Russia and NATO, which at that time existed, and in our contacts with the EU. Zero. Just like in the previous decades after the Soviet Union disappeared, our insistence that the EU must end the discrimination of Russians in Latvia and Estonia, was not heeded at all. We have a very deep conviction that our Western neighbours have racist instincts vis-à-vis Russia as a country and Russia as a nation. If you have any fact which will disprove what I am saying about the discrimination of Russians in Estonia, Latvia and Ukraine, where legislation was passed prohibiting everything, then, of course, we can discuss what analysis you might offer.

You call it aggression. You call it annexation. It’s your right. My answer is very simple: Don’t try to judge from your office or from New York. Go to Crimea, talk to the people. Nobody does it except for some brave politicians who are not in the system’s elite. Go to the east. Any of you, did you go to Donbass during the eight years of the war, when the Minsk agreements were raped every day? No. The Russian television was broadcasting the situation on the Donbass side of the line of contact. The daily life, and the damage to the civilian infrastructure, the killing of the peaceful population was broadcast daily. And we have been asking why Western journalists don’t do the same on the Ukrainian side of the line of contact. Because on the Ukrainian side of the line of contact the damage was inflicted only by return fire. And it would be seen immediately.

I understand that you want to ask a question that would allow you to write that I couldn’t answer your question. I was just asked by our Chinese friend about the military endgame and the goals of the operation. You should read Putin more often and more carefully. He announced everything on the 24th of February.

*Question:* And what about China, pressure from China to end the war? Your president said last week that President Xi raised concerns about the war with President Putin.

*Sergey Lavrov:* Did he say, “pressure from China?”

*Question:* He said “concern.” Are you coming under any pressure?

*Sergey Lavrov:* You asked me how we feel under pressure from China. You may tell your readers, listeners, viewers that I avoided answering your question. You mean you don’t understand Russian? High time to learn.

Source: www.mid.ru/ru/press_service/minister_speeches/1831220/?lang=en