'Reaction To The War The West Was Preparing For Many Years': Russian Foreign Minister On Ukraine Invasion

Russia's claim that the West was engaging in "blackmail and threats" against other nations threw a wrench in the G20 meeting that took place in New Delhi on Thursday.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov,  who is in India for the G20 Foreign Ministers meeting in New Delhi, on Thursday said the West's decision to invade Ukraine reflects its reaction to the long-awaited war, which is why it armed the Ukrainian government. "This invasion (of Ukraine as per the West) reflects the reaction to the war the West was preparing for many years and that is why it was arming the Ukrainian regime," said Lavrov in Delhi.

"It is in the UN charter that every state must adhere to the sovereignty & territorial integrity of any other state," he added.

Russia's claim that the West was engaging in "blackmail and threats" against other nations threw a wrench in the G20 meeting that took place in New Delhi on Thursday.

"Addressing G20 meet today, PM Modi, presented a balanced & responsible position. He was not just speaking about some isolated individual situation because the West is trying to divide geopolitical picture. Mr Modi gave assessment of situation across globe," Lavrov said.

"Some of them (nations) under pressure say certain things or vote in a certain manner to relieve themesleves from US pressure but almost no developing country, almost none of them, joined sanctions under Russia because they are aware what kind of game West is playing," he added.

Lavrov also spoke on the relations of Russia with India and said India is taking on key global agendas.

"Russia's relationship with India is described as a 'priviledge strategic partnership'. This reflects the special character of the relationship. We appreciate the responsible stand India is taking on key global agendas"

According to Sputnik News Agency, Lavrov stated during his press conference that the West refused to include Russia's proposal regarding the necessity of an investigation into the Nord Stream blasts in the G20 final declaration.

"They [Western countries] also refused to accept another fact in this context, which reflects the events that have taken place since then. I am referring to the terrorist act against the Nord Stream gas pipelines. Our proposal to include in the document the need for an impartial and honest investigation was categorically rejected by our Western partners," Lavrov said. 

The minister went on to say that the West demanded that the same text as last year be used, including a reference to the situation in Ukraine.

"The West insisted on reproducing the text on the situation around Ukraine, which was agreed at the G20 summit last year in Bali, completely ignoring our arguments that a lot of events have happened since then, including the sincere confessions of Mrs. [ex-German Chancellor Angela] Merkel, Mr. [former French President Francois] Hollande, Mr. [ex-Ukrainian President Petro] Poroshenko, and [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky himself that none of them was going to fulfill the Minsk agreements and the purpose of signing the Minsk agreements from the point of view of Western interests was to gain time to pump Ukraine with weapons and prepare it for war against Russia, " Sputnik quoted Lavrov saying.

Additionally, he stated that disagreements among G20 members regarding the Ukraine conflict prevented consensus on the final declaration.

According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the African Union should be admitted as a permanent member of the G20 at the G20 meeting in New Delhi.

India had hoped that its G20 presidency this year would focus on poverty alleviation and climate finance, but Russia's conflict with Ukraine has prevented other agenda items from being discussed.

For the first time since July, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met in the same room in New Delhi. However, it was unlikely that they would talk.