Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, accused the US on Tuesday of prolonging Moscow’s war against Ukraine by a year through its withdrawal from what he described as the “Anchorage agreements”, agreed upon between American President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, notes Kiev Independent.
The Kremlin has repeatedly referred to alleged agreements resulting from the meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska, although American officials have denied the existence of such agreements.
Lavrov maintained that Washington’s withdrawal from these alleged agreements, which were supposedly made under Europe’s pressure, hindered the end of the war.
“If the Americans had not withdrawn from the Anchorage agreements” and Europe had not “distanced” them from these, “we would have lived without war for a year now,” said Lavrov.
Russia would ask Ukraine for territories that it has not conquered in war.
His statements were made in the context where the US-led efforts to negotiate a broader peace agreement are stalling due to Russia’s territorial claims. The Kremlin has repeatedly rejected the idea of a ceasefire and asked Kiev to cede the partially occupied Donbas region, a strategically important area in eastern Ukraine.
In fact, Moscow is asking Ukraine to surrender territories that Russian forces have not managed to conquer militarily. In return, Kiev has requested a ceasefire along the current front line and emphasized the need for security guarantees to deter future Russian aggression.
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