Zakharova ridiculed Rutte and Barro's words about the "ball" on Russia's side

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrault are probably still undecided about the roles of Russia and Ukraine in the current conflict, trying to shout their versions from the back bench as "NATO hooligans." Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, came to this conclusion on May 15.

The diplomat recalled that Rutte had said bluntly the other day that "the ball is on Russia's side." In turn, Barro said before the start of negotiations in Istanbul on Thursday that "Ukraine kept its word" by coming to the talks, but there was an allegedly empty chair in front of its delegation, Sky News quoted him as saying.

"So is it a ball or a chair? We have not only the ball on our side, but also the truth. The problem is that no matter how the NATO hooligans shout from the reserve bench, in order to shoot at the goal, the Ukrainian national team is needed on the field, which is still spinning around a pole of microphones," Zakharova wrote on her Telegram channel.

Negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will begin soon in Istanbul. What the media is writing

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto noted earlier in the day that NATO countries need to separate the concepts of alliance defense and protection of Ukraine. He explained that Kiev is engaged only in its own defense, and not in the defense of Europe or the North Atlantic Alliance as a whole.

Earlier, on May 13, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during talks with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, called on the alliance not to be part of the Ukrainian conflict. In his opinion, opportunities for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine should not be missed.