Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov believes that “the time of tough alliances unequivocally based on the discipline of blocs has passed.” The foreign minister made a statement in an interview posted on Izvestia’s website on Monday, according to Itar-Tass.
“Today we need a network diplomacy, a diplomacy of flexible alliances, which can change depending on what problem should be solved,” Lavrov believes. “We are trying to work this way and as a result step up stable partnership ties in all regions of the world without exception,” he said.
Speaking on “how the U.S. foreign policy affects our interests,” Sergei Lavrov said “the United States is a power with truly global interests.” “They are looking for ways of an utterly reliable supply to the U.S. economy with energy carriers and are seeking to have access to any point in the world in order to destroy terrorists, who may plot some actions against the U.S. there. Certainly they need some partners, on which they can always influence actively to mobilize resources of these partners for their foreign political purposes. Say, for the support of the combat actions in Afghanistan and Iraq,” Lavrov said.
In his view, “It is reality we should take into account.” “Washington is infiltrating more and more actively in the post-Soviet space. Ukraine and Georgia are graphical examples. If Ukraine and Georgia enter NATO, this will result in a considerable negative geopolitical shift,” the Russian foreign minister said. “We witness how work is proceeding with Central Asian states, Azerbaijan in order to deliver their energy resources bypassing Russia, and along some routes, which are controlled all the same by the governments sharing the U.S. position,” Lavrov said.
In Lavrov’s view, Russia’s major response “should be our attractiveness in all aspects” – in economic, political, cultural as well as to secure the tranquillity and the defence capacity of the former Soviet republics.
