Lavrov’s demand stalls Russia-U.S. talks on Ukraine security – Bloomberg

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia and China must be included in any security guarantees for Ukraine, a demand that has effectively stalled talks between Moscow and Washington, Bloomberg reported.

Lavrov’s comments came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy ruled out China as a guarantor, saying Beijing did not support Kyiv at the start of the war and instead backed Moscow.

European diplomats cited by Bloomberg viewed Lavrov’s statement as an attempt to slow the peace process and said the Kremlin may try to lower the level of any future meetings to avoid new U.S. sanctions.