Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Western countries would try to block the State Duma elections but that these efforts would fail during the United Russia party's 23rd Congress in Moscow.
Lavrov accused the West of "declaring war" on Russia through Ukraine. Arguing that there was no partner in Europe with whom an agreement could be reached, Lavrov said Western countries expected Moscow to approach them for negotiations, but that Russia would not go to Europe for this purpose.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also said in a speech at the congress that the Kyiv administration was making its attacks harsher and more brutal as conditions on the battlefield grew more difficult.
Putin said the "special military operation" in Ukraine was continuing and argued that the situation on the battlefield was pushing the Kyiv administration toward harsher attacks. Putin claimed that this revealed the "Nazi essence" of the structure that Russia says it is fighting. He delivered the speech at the congress held ahead of the State Duma elections planned for September.
Moscow rejects proposal for European forces
Lavrov opposed the possibility of Europe deploying "stabilization forces" to Ukraine if a ceasefire were reached. He said such an arrangement would amount to accepting a ceasefire that would preserve the structure Moscow describes as a "Nazi regime."
The Russian foreign minister also argued that such an agreement would enable the deployment of what he claimed were "Nazi cells" that had re-emerged in Europe in recent years and spread to Ukraine. He maintained that halting the fighting along the line of contact would give Ukraine time to rearm.
Background to the Russia-Ukraine conflict
Russia has been carrying out a military assault on Ukraine since February 24, 2022. Moscow insists that Kyiv must abandon joining Western military structures for the attacks to end. Kyiv views this demand as interference in its internal affairs.
