Foreign Minister Lavrov Says Russia's Preparedness For Dialogue With Ukraine Is Damaged By Attacks In Kursk

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. (Wikimedia Commons/Kremlin.ru/men's

JAKARTA - Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia's readiness to hold peace talks with Ukraine was unquestionable, but this was undermined by Kyiv's reckless actions in the Kursk Region.

Foreign Minister Lavrov said in a press conference after holding talks with his team the Secretary of State of Senegal Yassine Fall.

"We always remember President (Vladimir) Putin making the latest peace proposals in June, after all previous initiatives and deals were destroyed and sabotaged by the Kyiv regime and Western supporters," he told TASS August 30.

"Our readiness to hold talks is unquestionable, although, of course, after reckless actions in the Kursk Region, discussions on this matter are no longer relevant," he continued.

Ukraine launched an attack on Russia's Kursk territory on August 6, as thousands of tank-backed soldiers and armored vehicles crossed the border areas of the two countries.

Warnings of missile attacks have been issued repeatedly in the region since then, and the government declared a federal state of emergency there.

A number of Moscow officials said the attack had an impact on plans for negotiations with Ukraine. Most recently, a Kremlin spokesman on Monday confirmed Russia would respond to Ukraine's attacks on the Kursk region, assessing the idea of ceasefire talks is no longer relevant.

"Such hostile actions cannot be left without a proper response," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"There will definitely be a response," he said.

President Putin has said Ukraine will receive a "decent response", but has not yet made clear to the public what the response would be.

On the same occasion, Peskov dismissed media reports that there had been some kind of ceasefire negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv.

"There are no negotiations," said Peskov.

"There have been many reports of various contacts in the media and not all of them are true," he said.

"The current negotiation topic has lost its relevance," Peskov stressed.

Last week, Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said Moscow would not hold negotiations until Ukraine was defeated, following an attack on Kursk.