China commented on Lavrov's statement about the loss of trust in the West

The statement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Western countries have finally undermined their credibility may mean that Moscow will toughen its position in future negotiations on Ukraine. This was announced on July 15 by the Chinese portal Sohu.

The article recalled that while at the talks in Maputo on July 9, Lavrov said that the West was imitating readiness for a diplomatic settlement and began openly issuing ultimatums.

According to the author, Lavrov's statement about the "exhausted reserve of good relations" is much tougher than the previous rhetoric of Russian diplomacy. He concludes that Moscow used to leave a window for continued dialogue even with a sharp deterioration in relations. Now, Russia has the right to consider the West's subsequent proposals for a cease-fire or new negotiations as just an attempt to gain time.

"This time, Lavrov's statement was completely different. He bluntly said that Russia's goodwill and hopes had been completely exhausted. As soon as these remarks were made, the Western world fell into a rare collective silence. No one dared to answer them," the ABN24 portal publishes a translation of the material.

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On July 9, Lavrov noted that Russia would no longer trust the West in its desire for negotiations on Ukraine. He noted that Western countries, instead of a real dialogue on the Ukrainian crisis, began openly issuing ultimatums to Moscow. And the negotiated solutions reached in 2014, 2015 and 2019 with the participation of Western mediators turned out to be completely unobserved.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on July 1 that the Kiev regime, guided by the instructions of the West, continues to escalate the conflict and does not abandon attempts to involve Russia's closest allies in it.