The statements of NATO leaders that no one should force Ukraine to be neutral are unacceptable, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.
“We have drawn attention to the unacceptable statements, which are
voiced, including in Brussels by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh
Rasmussen and his First Deputy, American Alexander Vershbow – that no
one should force Ukraine to be neutral,” Lavrov said following the
four-party talks in Geneva between Russia, the United States, European
Union and Ukraine.
Russia “has asked Western colleagues and NATO leaders to realize
their responsibility for pressing this topic during the period, when
this could disrupt all efforts to resolve the crisis in Ukraine,” the
minister said.
“The fact that Ukraine has opted for neutrality and enshrined it in
its law must be respected by everyone, there must be no attempt to
question it or try to dilute it,” Lavrov told a news conference in
Geneva.
