Lavrov asserts that Russia will not compromise regarding Ukraine’s position within NATO

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has stated that Russia will not accept a simple delay of Ukraine’s NATO membership or the introduction of European peacekeepers to Ukraine—two proposals reportedly suggested by advisers to US President-elect Donald Trump as part of a potential peace agreement.

In an interview with TASS news agency released on Monday, Lavrov indicated that Russia has not received any communication from Trump’s team regarding negotiations aimed at resolving the conflict in Ukraine.

“We have consistently expressed our readiness for negotiations. However, it is crucial to clarify with whom and on what matters these discussions would take place,” he emphasized.

Lavrov further noted that should discussions occur with the incoming US administration, Moscow will reject the proposals that have been circulated in the media from Trump’s advisers.

During his campaign, Trump frequently asserted his intention to swiftly negotiate a diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine crisis, yet he did not outline specific strategies for achieving this objective.

The Wall Street Journal reported in November that Trump’s advisers had formulated a plan to address the conflict, which includes postponing Ukraine’s NATO membership for twenty years, freezing the current front line, and creating a demilitarized zone overseen by peacekeepers from Ukraine’s European partners.

Lavrov asserted that lasting peace between Moscow and Kiev can only be attained through “reliable, legally binding agreements” that tackle the fundamental issues of the conflict and incorporate mechanisms to avert future breaches.

The foreign minister emphasized that Russia’s stance on resolving the conflict is “well known” and has been expressed by President Vladimir Putin on multiple occasions, including during his recent end-of-year press conference.

During that conference, Putin reaffirmed that Moscow is willing to engage in negotiations with Kiev without any preconditions, except for those previously established in Istanbul in 2022.

These conditions include Ukraine maintaining a neutral, non-aligned status, which would prevent its accession to NATO, as well as limitations on the presence of foreign military equipment within its borders. Putin also highlighted that any discussions must reflect the current realities that have developed since 2022, including the status of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, along with the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, which were incorporated into Russia following referendums conducted in the autumn of that year.