Lavrov Says Nothing Left in US Diplomacy but Ultimatums

MOSCOW- US diplomats have been only resorting in their work to threats and ultimatums and use sanctions if other countries refuse to meet their demands, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a program “Moscow. Kremlin. Putin.”

“Now I see nothing in US diplomacy but ultimatums and then sanctions in case they are not fulfilled,” Lavrov said in the interview, published on the Foreign Ministry’s website, according to Itar Tass. “Other tools have somehow disappeared from US diplomacy’s arsenal and this is regrettable,” he added.

 In comment on US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s remark that NATO countries need to take joint steps against Russia over Ukraine, Lavrov noted that the US top diplomat “says many things.” “When we sometimes talk over the phone with him (it’s been a long time ago since we last met) he holds a conversation rather correctly. Although it’s clear that we disagree on most issues.”

Lavrov noted that “if you serve as a foreign minister, you have to search for diplomatic solutions to various problems.”

Earlier, Pompeo said the Washington administration expected that NATO would endorse a series of actions next week in response to Russia’s steps in Crimea and the Sea of Azov.

 H.M