Foreign Secretary’s meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov, 10 February 2022

A Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office spokesperson said:

In her meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said that the aggressive build-up of Russian forces on Ukraine’s border threatened Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. She made clear that Russia needed to live up to the international commitments it had entered into.

She added that any further Russian invasion of Ukraine would have massive consequences and incur severe costs. Russia needed to deescalate, withdraw its forces from the border and pursue a diplomatic path as NATO allies had offered.

The Foreign Secretary further emphasised that Russian aggression was counterproductive and had increased tensions, to which NATO and Ukraine had to respond. The Foreign Secretary noted the right of every nation to choose its own security arrangements. She rejected the notion that improving one nation’s security threatened another’s.

The Foreign Secretary said as Permanent Members of the UN Security Council, the UK and Russia had a responsibility to maintain international peace and security and the pair discussed cooperation on addressing Iran’s nuclear programme and the situation in Afghanistan.

The Foreign Secretary noted that our differences were with the aggressive policy of the Russian government towards Ukraine, not with the Russian people. She highlighted the cultural and educational links between Russia and the UK and invited Foreign Minister Lavrov to visit the UK in the coming months. The UK wanted to see an improved bilateral relationship, but this depended on Russia choosing to deescalate and taking the path of diplomacy.