Putin’s Right Hand Man Gives Middle Finger To Trump’s Peace Efforts
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov flatly rejected President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Ukraine.
Lavrov said territorial swaps would not “stop” Moscow’s campaign in a Tuesday meeting with foreign ambassadors, directly contradicting Trump’s proposal. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) noted Trump recently argued peace would require land concessions. Lavrov also dismissed U.S. offers to restore trade ties as an incentive for Vladimir Putin.
He insisted any deal must resolve what the Kremlin calls the war’s “root causes,” which ISW analysts interpret as installing a pro-Russian government in Kiev, forcing Ukrainian neutrality and blocking NATO’s Open Door Policy.
MORE: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on September 17 that territorial exchanges will not “stop” Russia’s war in Ukraine, in contradiction to US President Donald Trump’s recent statements that peace between Russia and Ukraine will require “land swaps.”
Lavrov also… https://t.co/at7jC7VA9U pic.twitter.com/U9AKZBhFiM
— Institute for the Study of War (@TheStudyofWar) September 18, 2025
Lavrov warned that Russia would view any European troops stationed in a postwar Ukraine as “legitimate military targets.” The threat echoed earlier declarations from senior Kremlin figures rejecting Western security guarantees for Kiev, according to ISW. (Read more from “Putin’s Right Hand Man Gives Middle Finger To Trump’s Peace Efforts” HERE)
