Kyiv: Russia The country’s top diplomat appears to have said Moscow’s overarching goal is to topple the government of the President of Ukraine. Volodymyr Zelensky As Russian artillery barrages and air strikes continue across cities Ukraine,
Russian foreign minister’s remarks Sergei Lavrov It comes amid Ukraine’s efforts to restart grain exports from its Black Sea ports, something that would help ease a global food shortage, with a new deal tested by a Russian strike on Odessa over the weekend. under.
Speaking to envoys at an Arab League summit in Cairo late Sunday, lavrov said Moscow is determined to help Ukrainians “free themselves from the burden of this absolutely unacceptable regime.”
Lavrov accused Kyiv and “its Western allies” of propaganda aimed at ensuring that Ukraine “becomes Russia’s eternal enemy.”
“The Russian and Ukrainian people will continue to live together, we will certainly help the Ukrainian people to get rid of the regime, which is completely anti-people and historically anti-people,” he said.
Lavrov’s remarks contrasted with the Kremlin’s line at the start of the war, when Russian officials repeatedly insisted that they were not trying to overthrow Zelensky’s government.
Lavrov argued that Russia was ready to negotiate an agreement to end hostilities in March, when Kyiv compromised and announced its intention to defeat Russia on the battlefield, asserting that the West had Ukraine is encouraged to continue fighting.
“The West insists that Ukraine should not start talks until Russia is defeated on the battlefield,” Lavrov said.
It was not yet clear whether grain shipments would resume after Russia and Ukraine signed similar agreements with the United Nations and Turkey on Friday in Istanbul. The deals are aimed at clearing the way for shipments of millions of tons of desperately needed Ukrainian grain, as well as exports of Russian grain and fertilizer.
The Kremlin insisted Monday that an attack on Odessa’s port over the weekend targeted military assets and would not affect grain shipping.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the strike had to do “specifically with military infrastructure”.
“This is in no way related to the infrastructure involved in the fulfillment of agreements and the export of grain. Therefore it cannot in any way affect the start of the shipment process,” Peskov said.
The Kremlin spokesman also said that Moscow is not interested in stopping all gas supplies to Europe and that recent restrictions on the flow of Russian gas into European countries are “only the result of sanctions imposed by Europeans, and Europeans themselves suffer from these”. There are restrictions.”
Peskov said, “Russia is a responsible gas supplier, and it doesn’t matter what anyone says, the European Commission, in European capitals, in America, Russia has been a country that largely guarantees Europe’s energy security.” gives.”
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s presidential office said on Monday that at least two civilians were killed and 10 others were injured in the latest Russian shelling during the past 24 hours.
In the eastern Donetsk region, the focus of the Russian offensive, Russian artillery attacked Avdeevka, Kramatorsk and Kostiantinivka. At least five houses were damaged in the airstrike in Bakhmut.
“The Russians are using scorched earth tactics throughout the Donbass, they fire from the ground and air to wipe out entire cities,” Donetsk government Pavlo Kyrilenko said in remarks on television.
The Russians also attacked the Kharkiv region. In the city of Chuhuiv, a Russian attack destroyed the building of a local club and rescuers pulled several people from under the rubble.
Kharkiv government Oleh Sinehubov condemned the attack, calling it “stupid vandalism”, saying “it looks like a deadly lottery when no one knows where the next strike will come and the whole area is dangerous to live in.”
In the Dnipro region, a 10-year-old girl was injured in the shelling, and a 7-year-old child was injured in the Russian shelling of the Mykolaiv region.
In other developments:
Russia’s top domestic security agency said on Monday it had foiled an attempt by Ukrainian military intelligence to entice Russian military pilots to surrender their fighter planes to Ukraine.
The Federal Security Service (FSB), the KGB’s successor agency, said on Monday that Ukrainians offered Russian pilots cash and EU citizenship to persuade them to hijack their warplanes. In a video released by the FSB, a man claiming to be a Ukrainian intelligence officer is offering to pay a potential defector pilot USD 2 million if he surrenders his plane during a combat mission over Ukraine. Will do
Russian state television claimed that Western spy agencies assisted Ukrainians in this effort. The Russian claims could not be independently verified.
Russian foreign minister’s remarks Sergei Lavrov It comes amid Ukraine’s efforts to restart grain exports from its Black Sea ports, something that would help ease a global food shortage, with a new deal tested by a Russian strike on Odessa over the weekend. under.
Speaking to envoys at an Arab League summit in Cairo late Sunday, lavrov said Moscow is determined to help Ukrainians “free themselves from the burden of this absolutely unacceptable regime.”
Lavrov accused Kyiv and “its Western allies” of propaganda aimed at ensuring that Ukraine “becomes Russia’s eternal enemy.”
“The Russian and Ukrainian people will continue to live together, we will certainly help the Ukrainian people to get rid of the regime, which is completely anti-people and historically anti-people,” he said.
Lavrov’s remarks contrasted with the Kremlin’s line at the start of the war, when Russian officials repeatedly insisted that they were not trying to overthrow Zelensky’s government.
Lavrov argued that Russia was ready to negotiate an agreement to end hostilities in March, when Kyiv compromised and announced its intention to defeat Russia on the battlefield, asserting that the West had Ukraine is encouraged to continue fighting.
“The West insists that Ukraine should not start talks until Russia is defeated on the battlefield,” Lavrov said.
It was not yet clear whether grain shipments would resume after Russia and Ukraine signed similar agreements with the United Nations and Turkey on Friday in Istanbul. The deals are aimed at clearing the way for shipments of millions of tons of desperately needed Ukrainian grain, as well as exports of Russian grain and fertilizer.
The Kremlin insisted Monday that an attack on Odessa’s port over the weekend targeted military assets and would not affect grain shipping.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the strike had to do “specifically with military infrastructure”.
“This is in no way related to the infrastructure involved in the fulfillment of agreements and the export of grain. Therefore it cannot in any way affect the start of the shipment process,” Peskov said.
The Kremlin spokesman also said that Moscow is not interested in stopping all gas supplies to Europe and that recent restrictions on the flow of Russian gas into European countries are “only the result of sanctions imposed by Europeans, and Europeans themselves suffer from these”. There are restrictions.”
Peskov said, “Russia is a responsible gas supplier, and it doesn’t matter what anyone says, the European Commission, in European capitals, in America, Russia has been a country that largely guarantees Europe’s energy security.” gives.”
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s presidential office said on Monday that at least two civilians were killed and 10 others were injured in the latest Russian shelling during the past 24 hours.
In the eastern Donetsk region, the focus of the Russian offensive, Russian artillery attacked Avdeevka, Kramatorsk and Kostiantinivka. At least five houses were damaged in the airstrike in Bakhmut.
“The Russians are using scorched earth tactics throughout the Donbass, they fire from the ground and air to wipe out entire cities,” Donetsk government Pavlo Kyrilenko said in remarks on television.
The Russians also attacked the Kharkiv region. In the city of Chuhuiv, a Russian attack destroyed the building of a local club and rescuers pulled several people from under the rubble.
Kharkiv government Oleh Sinehubov condemned the attack, calling it “stupid vandalism”, saying “it looks like a deadly lottery when no one knows where the next strike will come and the whole area is dangerous to live in.”
In the Dnipro region, a 10-year-old girl was injured in the shelling, and a 7-year-old child was injured in the Russian shelling of the Mykolaiv region.
In other developments:
Russia’s top domestic security agency said on Monday it had foiled an attempt by Ukrainian military intelligence to entice Russian military pilots to surrender their fighter planes to Ukraine.
The Federal Security Service (FSB), the KGB’s successor agency, said on Monday that Ukrainians offered Russian pilots cash and EU citizenship to persuade them to hijack their warplanes. In a video released by the FSB, a man claiming to be a Ukrainian intelligence officer is offering to pay a potential defector pilot USD 2 million if he surrenders his plane during a combat mission over Ukraine. Will do
Russian state television claimed that Western spy agencies assisted Ukrainians in this effort. The Russian claims could not be independently verified.