Russia calls Anchorage agreements first step toward ending Ukraine war

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday that implementation of agreements reached last year by Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska, would represent the first major step toward ending the war in Ukraine.

Speaking at a news conference in Minsk, Belarus, Lavrov said Moscow continues to expect the implementation of the understandings reached during the leaders’ meeting in August last year.

“We still expect that the agreement reached by the two presidents in Anchorage will be implemented. More so as key elements of that agreement were proposed by the United States and President Trump and accepted by President Putin,” he said.

According to Lavrov, the implementation of those understandings would become “the most important stage” and a “first step” toward ending the conflict, allowing the parties to begin discussing numerous other aspects of a broader settlement.

The Russian foreign minister said a reported US peace proposal consisting of 27 points remains under consideration. Moscow has questions regarding the plan but would be prepared to use it as a basis for further discussions once the Anchorage agreements are put into effect.

Lavrov also commented on the US role in diplomatic efforts surrounding Ukraine.

Referring to Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s remarks that the United States cannot mediate because it supports Ukraine, Lavrov noted that Trump nevertheless reaffirmed to Putin that Washington remains interested in helping achieve a fair and lasting resolution to the conflict.

“We will observe what concrete actions the United States undertakes,” Lavrov said, adding that Moscow still expects the Anchorage arrangements to be fulfilled.

The minister expressed hope that the Ukraine issue would remain a priority for Washington and would not be left exclusively to European governments.

He argued that the Trump administration had put forward a number of “useful initiatives” and said he hoped the US would continue to engage in efforts to resolve the conflict rather than allowing European allies to dictate policy.

The Russian foreign minister was sharply critical of Europe, accusing European governments of undermining prospects for a settlement.

According to him, European leaders traveled to Washington shortly after the Anchorage summit and sought to persuade Trump to abandon the approach he had proposed and which Putin had endorsed.

He claimed that European efforts had been at least partially successful, saying: “Thus far, they are succeeding.”

Lavrov further argued that Europe, in its current political configuration, is incapable of making a constructive contribution to resolving the conflict. Instead, he said, European governments are attempting to obstruct efforts aimed at a fair settlement.

“I have no illusions that Europe in its current configuration can do anything useful,” he said. “I have no doubt they will seek to do considerable harm to efforts aimed at a fair settlement.”

Citing earlier remarks by Putin, Lavrov said that under current conditions, developments on the battlefield remain decisive.

“In these circumstances, everything is being decided on the front line by our military personnel, on whom the entire country places its hopes,” he said.

Turning to Ukraine’s leadership, Lavrov criticized President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, accusing him of acting with a sense of impunity.

According to Lavrov, Zelenskyy is attempting to take advantage of the current political environment to demonstrate strength and bolster his position.

“It seems to me that he now feels complete impunity and wants to use the current situation to show how tough he is,” Lavrov said.