Russia won’t exchange territory after attack on Kursk Region — Lavrov

MOSCOW, August 31. /TASS/. Russia is not considering exchanging its territory following the attack on the Kursk Region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with RT television.
“It is very hard to tell what goal and intent they were pursuing. But political analysts are discussing it now. And even [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky said, he sometimes makes Freudian slips, that they will need this for future exchanges. That’s why they are taking prisoners and want to seize square kilometers. It’s so simple-minded and naive. We do not discuss our territory with anyone. We do not negotiate about our territory,” the minister said, as he commented on Ukraine’s attack on the Kursk Region.
He quoted Russian President Vladimir Putin as saying a year and a half ago that Russia “is not against talks, but those who are against them should realize that the longer they procrastinate, the harder it will be to reach an agreement.”
“In Istanbul, less than a month after the start of our special military operation, compared to what we see now, it was very easy to reach an agreement. They did not want that,” the minister said.
“About everything else, the president said on June 14, speaking at the Russian Foreign Ministry, that we are ready to resolve the situation on the basis of the reality. The reality on the ground, the reality of the Russian Constitution, which clearly states that we now have four new constituents of the federation in addition to Crimea. Of course, with all this, there can also be no talk of Ukraine joining NATO,” Lavrov said.
The minister also stated that Russia is currently not seeking any talks.
“The Russian president has repeatedly said that those who make statements insinuating that Russia rejects negotiations, while Ukraine is ready for them – he has already said this many times – you at least tell this Zelensky, when he is in his right mind, if such situations happen on any day of the week, tell him to cancel his decree prohibiting negotiations,” Lavrov said.