Moscow follows discussions in West about allowing Ukraine to strike deep into Russia

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday that Moscow is following discussions in the West about allowing Ukraine to carry out strikes deep into the Russian territory.

Speaking at a news conference in Moscow following a meeting with his Senegalese counterpart Yassine Fall, Lavrov said no one should be deceived by the false impression that the West is yielding to persistence by Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, arguing that the West, led by the US and Britain, is using him in its fight against Russia.

"They pump Ukraine with more and more modern weapons. Now there is a discussion about how to use these weapons," he said.

Lavrov pointed out that Europe tried to defeat Russia at least twice in the past, first in 1812 under the commandment of French emperor Napoleon, then in 1941-1945 under the guidance of the Nazi Germany leader Adolf Hitler.

"Now almost the same countries have united against us under the same banners of Nazism, which indicates that the West, led by the US and Britain, is obsessed with the task of hindering our development," he noted.

Lavrov expressed certainty that such plans are "doomed to failure" because justice is on Russia's side while the West pursues geopolitical, selfish goals of "maintaining dominance and hegemony."

Lavrov also said that Russia's June's peace proposal to Ukraine was sincere but Kyiv launched its incursion into the Kursk region.

For her part, Yassine Fall said African countries, including Senegal, adhere to a neutral position on Ukraine, advocating for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.

"We have a neutral position, we call for dialogue, for the beginning of negotiations. This is the position of Senegal, this is the position of the African Union," she said.

Fall said she also exchanged views with Lavrov on the situation in Gaza, noting: "We must not forget about the need to achieve peace and strengthen ties between Russia and Senegal in order to resolve important issues, for example, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We have heard Russia's position on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict."