Moscow, September 17, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned that any deployment of Western troops on Ukrainian territory would be treated by Moscow as direct war against Russia, while reiterating that Russia remains open to diplomatic negotiations to resolve the conflict.
Speaking at the International Festival of Youth in Yekaterinburg on Wednesday, Lavrov said Moscow had no interest in becoming involved in a broader confrontation but issued a stark warning over a possible European military intervention.
“Let me emphasise that we have no interest in getting involved in this, but if Europe, which talks every day about preparing for war against Russia, attacks the Russian Federation, that will be a completely different war, and it will be very short,” he said.
Lavrov said Russia was prepared to pursue a diplomatic settlement, including through the trilateral format proposed again by the United States. However, he maintained that any settlement would have to address what Moscow describes as the root causes of the conflict and fulfil the objectives it set at the beginning of its military operation, Xinhua news agency reported.
He identified addressing security threats and protecting what he described as the rights of Russian people, including their right to use their native language and practise the Orthodox faith, as key objectives.
Lavrov said he believed achieving these goals, as formulated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, could help resolve the crisis and contribute to a broader balance of interests and international rules across Eurasia, including Europe.
At an ambassadorial roundtable on Tuesday, Lavrov said Russia was willing to consider “reasonable compromises” but had not altered its position on NATO’s presence near Russian borders.
“We are ready, within this position, to seek reasonable compromises, but fundamentally we have not changed our objectives — to ensure our security, to prevent NATO’s presence on our borders,” he said.
Lavrov also welcomed US efforts to facilitate a settlement, saying Washington understood the conflict’s “root causes” differently from other Western countries. He reiterated that Russia had never rejected negotiations and remained ready for both bilateral and trilateral talks.
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