Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is meeting the press in Moscow to review the results of Russia’s 2017 foreign policy. The event begins at 10am Moscow time (07:00 GMT) – follow RT’s live updates below.
15 January 2018
Julian Assange tweeted a video of RT’s Ilya Petrenko asking Sergey Lavrov about his stance on the WikiLeaks co-founder’s six-year exile, and if Russia would give him citizenship. While the question is “purely hypothetical,” Lavrov responded that Russia focuses on the humanitarian side of Assange’s fate and urges all the sides to “show goodwill and fix the problem at last.”
Just under two-and-a-half hours after he started, Lavrov brings the session to a close.
Plenty to reflect on from the foreign minister's comments.
A closing question on ties with Estonia.
Lavrov says a treaty between the two that is still waiting to be signed will be ratified, but for that to happen Estonia should stop being one of the main promoters of Russophobia in NATO.
A question from Japan on a potential Lavrov visit and whether this could take place before the March 2018 presidential election in Russia.
Also - US missile defenses being installed in Japan - what is Russia's view?
"Good things first," Lavrov says. "We are looking forward to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Russia [in 2018]."
Lavrov says the two sides are cooperating at many levels, including diplomatic, military, economic and cultural.
Lavrov says, however: "The missile defense issue is a dark cloud in our relations."
"They said the US Aegis system in Japan will be different from that in South Korea... but we don't have this information... We heard supposedly Japan will control it, not the US, but we have our doubts about this - we would like more substantial assurances.
"I doubt the US will make an exception and allow Japan to control the system.
"We don't want US missile systems to destabilize international relations... They tell us 'don't worry, the systems won't be used against Russia', but we have our concerns."
Lavrov is asked by a journalist from the Dozhd TV station about Russian casualties in Ukraine and Russian citizens missing there - can Lavrov talk about private Russian security companies operating abroad?
Lavrov says Russia always responds to reports of missing people abroad, and that the military often investigates these case. If there is any news, the press will be informed, the foreign minister says.
On the naming row between Greece and Macedonia, Lavrov says Russia would abide by any decision made in the Macedonian constitution, should that happen.
On US gas activities in Greece, Lavrov says these steps show that Washington is afraid of Russia and cannot compete, so is forcing European states into spending more on US gas.
Lavrov cites Russian gas projects - Turkish Stream and North Stream - as well as the South Stream project - which show Russia can supply Europe with gas. Russia needs iron-clad EU guarantees that the operation of the North Stream project will be able to proceed, Lavrov says, however.
Moving onto the final questions, more than two hours after the session began.
Lavrov is asked about US activities in Greece - especially gas export facilities. This is seen as an attempt by the US to block Russia - could this damage Greece-Russia ties?
And what is Russia's position on the row between Greece and Macedonia over the latter's official name?
A Pakistani journalist asks about ties between the two nations.
Lavrov says Russia wants to work with Pakistan to neutralize the terrorist threat, and the agreement to supply military equipment is evidence of that.
Back to the Middle East. Lavrov says that Russia has already commented on the destabilizing effect of the Trump decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
Russia has sympathy for the Palestinians, Lavrov says, adding that Palestinians have been making unilateral attempts to push the peace process forward, but these have not been reciprocated.
"We cannot allow the situation to drift," he says. "I hope we are able to find a way out."
A question for Lavrov on Russia's position regarding US ties with Central Asian countries, in particular the US' new Central Asia initiative, the C5+1.
"We have nothing against our Central Asian neighbors having a diverse range of ties, but we hope that this will be done with respect to collective security and economic agreements," he says.
"We are aware the US would like to abuse that system," Lavrov warns.
Lavrov says caution should be exercised because the US often only seeks to further its own interests.
A journalist asks about Russian ties with Latin America, especially as US ties with its southern neighbors are "not that great."
Lavrov says Russia is looking forward to welcoming Latin American countries for the football World Cup this summer. He also notes the visa-free regime with many Latin American states.
"We have well-developed bilateral relations with almost all countries in Latin America, our turnover is more than $10bn, especially in high-tech areas... but there are a lot of new projects as well.
"We have shared positions on UN-related issues with many Latin American countries," Lavrov adds. "Latin America has a principle, almost a law, that it's wrong to back unconsitutional coups...," Lavrov adds.
The discussion turns to Russian borders and controls with Belarus - a reporter says border controls are in place that technically should not be there.
Lavrov says that seems strange, and that Russia favors a "no border" approach with Belarus. He notes, however, that there is a terrorist threat, and that people could enter Russia through Belarus from outside countries, which complicates the situation.
A question on Russia-Poland ties: "Warsaw has a lot of grievances with Moscow - Moscow says it's a partner, but Poland keeps saying Russia is an enemy - how can we build ties?"
"Russia is ready for a pragmatic approach with Poland," Lavrov says.
"We've always had good cultural ties with Poland... I think that speaks volumes about the close relationship between our peoples...
"But you are right - we are branded as enemies by Poland... it's trying to promote Russophobia as a national idea... tear down monuments to Russian soldiers...," Lavov says.
"We're ready for dialogue, but Poland need to know that it's a two-way street, they cannot dictate based on backing from hawks in Washington and elsewhere."
Lavrov is asked about the French allegations of 'fake news' by Russian media.
Lavrov says that, as far as he knows, there is only one body that will decide in France what 'fake news' is, so it's like a judge deciding without hearing testimony.
More on Ukraine: Could Lavrov clarify what Russia plans to do regarding the self-proclaimed People's Republics of Lugansk and Donetsk?
Lavrov cites the Minsk agreements, and how Ukraine has rejected the chance to take up commitments it made on these regions, and is essentially ignoring them.
"Kiev has called people terrorists who are not terrorists," he says.
"We are interested in the full implementation of the Minsk accords," he adds.
A Canadian reporter asks about two issues: Ukraine and North Korea.
On the latter, Lavrov reiterates that Russia and China were not invited to the meeting in Vancouver on North Korea, and that he expects little to come from these talks.
On Ukraine and a potential Canadian role in peacekeeping there, Lavrov says the reporter should ask the combatants about this possibility.
A question about the Eurasia Economic Union - which encompasses Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia - and in particular the frosty EU attitude to it.
The EU was originally unwilling to accept this union, Lavrov says, but it appears to have softened its stance slightly on this.
Lavrov is asked about Russia's ties with the Vatican, and lists a range of areas in which the two are working together - keeping things positive.
The discussion then takes a sharp turn, and he is asked about Russia's official opinion on the Russo-Finnish conflict of 1939 and who started it.
"Historians should sort this out, diplomats should not answer this question on what was a difficult period," he says.
The foreign minister receives a question on Libya and Russia's role.
"The planned elections are important," he says. "We've been working with all the parties in Libya... it's necessary to bring all the key players to the table."
Back to ties with America: "Does Lavrov ever wish it were Clinton in the White House, instead of Trump?"
"Diplomats only work with facts," Lavrov says, giving the question short shrift.
Lavrov turns to the second question from RT's Ilya Petrenko, which is on the Syria peace process.
"The Astana process is helping the UN process, so they should be thankful for this," Lavrov says. "We are helping to broaden the scope of the Syrian parties involved in the peace process."
"It's a purely hypothetical question about what Russia would do if Assange asked for help," Lavrov says.
"We treat these issues from a humanitarian point of view... the same was true with Snowden. But I cannot comment on Assange, he isn't in Russia.
"It's clear that the situation needs to be resolved... we understand what Ecuador is doing... all the sides need to show common sense."
A question from RT's Ilya Petrenko about WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange. "It will soon be six years that Assange has been holed up at the Ecuadorian embassy... would Russia be willing to provide sanctuary to Assange?"
The next question focuses on relations with Armenia and Azerbaijan, in particular the dispute over the Nagorno-Karabakh region between the two nations.
Lavrov says Russia is working with the US and France - co-chairmen on the group aimed at mediating the issue - and that as a general comment, Moscow believes a "stage-by-stage" approach is needed, rather than a single document to resolve the entire problem all at once.
Lavrov highlighted a conference on North Korea that is being held in Vancouver, to which neither Russia nor China were invited. The "methods and manners" of American diplomats are questionable, he says.
Lavrov links the Iran issue and North Korea, saying if the Iran agreement is cancelled despite Tehran's compliance, why would people expect Pyongyang to believe in any potential deal?
Lavrov is asked about the Iran nuclear agreement, and the doubts from Washington over maintaining it.
"The Iran agreement was a major achievement," Lavrov says. "We told Washington that we believe their approach will result in unpredictable consequences... so far we have been unable to persuade the US to change its stance."
"The reality is, Iran has been abiding by the agreement, the IAEA says that," Lavrov adds.
Lavrov says the US has been trying to change the text of the treaty.
The US behavior is "deplorable," Lavrov says. "I don't even want to think about the consequences [if the deal collapses]."
Lavrov is asked about the Kurdish issue, and Russia's role in resolving the tensions between the Kurds in Iraq.
"We support Iraq's territorial integrity," Lavrov says. Russia is ready to act as a mediator if needed, he says.
On Syria, the opinions of the Kurds need to be taken into account, Lavrov says.
But new US initiatives to rely on border forces with the Kurds were met negatively by Turkey, and Russia has serious questions for the US over maintaining the territorial integrity of Syria, Lavrov adds.
"There is a fear that the US is pursuing a policy to cut Syria into several pieces - but there is nothing in the UN resolutions on that... so we are seeking clarification," Lavrov says.
Lavrov says a broad range of opinons within Syria need to be taken into account when resolving the situation there, including tribal leaders.
Discussing the US role, the Russian foreign minister says there is no real difference between the Obama administration's policy and that of the Trump administration.
"The signs indicate that the US does not want to keep Syria as a state in its current borders," he says.
The West continues to criticize the Syrian government for its military steps, Lavrov says, but adds that Syrian forces are only taking steps in response to attacks by Al-Nusra Front terrorists.
The topic turns to Syria and the Astana talks, facilitated by Russia, Turkey and Iran.
"We embarked on this process after the Obama administration failed to distinguish between the Syrian opposition and terrorists," Lavrov says.
He says the situation in Syria has stabilized, but there are still dangers, giving the example of the recent terrorist attack on a Russian base in Khmeimim.
Lavrov continues on the theme of US steps against Russia.
The world needs "a level playing field" instead of pushing countries not to buy Russian gas or weapons, he says.
"We also see a biased attitude against Russian media," Lavrov says, mentioning the recent US steps in pushing RT and Sputnik to register as foreign agents.
He notes the steps against Russia in the sporting world as an example of efforts to target Russia, with the ban on the national team at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
"We cannot put up with all the actions the US is performing," Lavrov says.
"The world economy is growing in cycles," Lavrov says. "Growth can be a painful process, but the US has to accept this."
He adds that the US uses "extraterritorial principles" of applying its laws elsewhere, noting that the Trump administration has followed the Obama one in this respect.
"The US is afraid of fair competition," Lavrov says, citing the issue of energy.
The topic turns to the US and relations with Russia.
"The Americans are known for their feelings of exceptionalism," Lavrov says. "They still rely on this mentality."
"The reality is that the West is losing the dominance it's had for five centuries.. there are new power centers and powerhouses emerging... the international community needs to adapt to this, but the US is not doing this - it resorts to illegal means to restore its role in global politics."
The US is missing out on chances to work together, Lavrov says.
The discussion turns to Ukraine, Lavrov is asked: What will Russia do regarding the Budapest treaty on cooperation with Ukraine which was signed in 1994?
Lavrov notes that Crimea chose to reunite with Russia, but also says Russia continues to respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine. He also says Russia has not threatened Ukraine.
"The bottom line is that Ukraine has subscribed to the Minsk accord, this has nothing to do with Crimea, we need to push the Ukraine authorities to implement what they committed to," he says. "The Minsk accords are the most important thing at the moment."
Lavrov discusses economic ties with China and in the Eurasia area in general, highlighting efforts with the 'One Belt, One Road' initiative.
Still on China, Lavrov says Moscow and Beijing have tried to cooperate in the area of space, but the US has blocked efforts and continues to try to "militarize space."
The next question is on Russia-China ties.
Lavrov says Russia and China have been working together on the Korean nuclear issue. He reiterates the line that Russia has called for people to "calm down" and "freeze" the situation, including North Korean missile tests and US drills with South Korea and Japan.
Russia will provide support for the bilateral talks between the Koreas, he says. "This is the most important item on the Russia-China agenda," he says.
Lavrov again criticizes the US for its belligerent approach, saying it makes the situation worse.
The first question comes from Rossiya 24 TV station on Lavrov's general impressions of 2017.
Lavrov mentions Syria first, and says he hopes the national dialogue process in Syria will also help the UN Geneva process on the issue.
He then turns to Israel-Palestine, saying that the dead end in recognizing Palestine as a state has helped fuel radicalization.
He then laments the way the West has viewed the Ukraine issue, saying that the Minsk agreements are clear, and that the focus should be on them. The West's blind support of Kiev has hindered the process, he says.
Lavrov says Russia has been doing its best to protect the interests of its people and companies, as well as uphold international law through truth and mutual respect.
"We want to prevent the world from descending into chaos and degradation," he says.
"We've seen progress in Syria," he adds, noting that Russia has been working with Turkey and Iran in this area as Syria prepares for a national congress.
Working on the Iranian nuclear deal is a further aim for 2018, as are Israel-Palestine ties and the situation in Ukraine, Lavrov adds.
Lavrov says that 2017 was a difficult year, citing US threats over North Korea and Iran, saying these actions destabilize the situation.
"The US wants to dictate ultimatums and is unwilling to listen to other centers of power," Lavrov says. "They are unwilling to accept a multipolar world."
Sergey Lavrov is introduced by Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. He begins by welcoming the assembled members of the press and wishing them all the best for the new year.