Russia Signals Possibility of Ukraine Peace Talks — With One Big Condition for U.S.
By Fox News. Russia is willing to work with President-elect Trump to help improve relations with Ukraine so long as the U.S. makes the first move, Kremlin officials said this week, adding fresh momentum for the possibility of peace talks as its war in Ukraine threatens to stretch into a third year.
Speaking to reporters Thursday in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reiterated that Russia could be ready to come to the negotiating table regarding its “special military operation” in Ukraine — echoing the phrasing used by the Kremlin to describe its war in Ukraine — so long as the U.S. acted first.
“If the signals that are coming from the new team in Washington to restore the dialogue that Washington interrupted after the start of a special military operation [the war in Ukraine] are serious, of course, we will respond to them,” Lavrov said in Moscow.
But he stressed that the U.S. should move first, telling reporters that “the Americans broke the dialogue, so they should make the first move.”
His remarks come after Trump’s pick for Ukraine envoy, retired Lieutenant-General Keith Kellogg, told Fox News in an interview this month that both Russia and Ukraine appear to be willing to negotiate an end to the war — citing heavy casualties, damage to critical infrastructure, and a general sense of exhaustion that has permeated both countries as the war drags well past the thousand-day mark. (Read more from “Russia Signals Possibility of Ukraine Peace Talks — With One Big Condition for U.S.” HERE)
_____________________________________________________
Russia Warns Trump: Do Not Test Nuclear Weapon
By The Telegraph. Moscow has warned Donald Trump against resuming the testing of nuclear weapons when he takes office, saying it would “not rule anything out” in response to US aggression.
Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister who oversees arms control, noted that Mr Trump refused to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty during his first term.
Referencing this refusal, Mr Ryabkov said: “American policy in its various aspects is extremely hostile to us today.”
“So the options for us to act in the interests of ensuring security and the potential measures and actions we have to do this – and to send politically appropriate signals… we do not rule anything out,” he added.
The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty banning nuclear test explosions was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1996, but has not come into force as some signatory nations have not ratified it. (Read more from “Russia Warns Trump: Do Not Test Nuclear Weapon” HERE)
