After Alaska summit, Trump and his team showed a much deeper approach to resolving the Ukrainian crisis, says Lavrov

U.S. President Donald Trump and his team demonstrated a much deeper approach to the Ukrainian settlement following the Russia-U.S. summit in Alaska, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Rossiya-24 TV channel.

“President Trump and his team—especially after the meeting in Alaska—showed a much deeper approach to resolving this crisis, realizing that it is necessary to eliminate the root causes, which we, President Putin in particular, have constantly spoken about,” Lavrov noted.

According to the minister, one of these root causes is precisely Russia’s security concerns.

“This is connected with the fact that the commitments given to us to prevent NATO’s eastward expansion have been grossly violated for decades. The president has repeatedly noted that after these promises, there were five waves of NATO expansion,” Lavrov stated.

He also noted that the atmosphere at the Alaska summit was good, which was reflected in the statements made after the talks between presidents Putin and Trump. “It was undoubtedly a useful conversation. It was obvious that the U.S. president and his team sincerely wish to achieve a result that will be long-term, stable, and reliable,” Lavrov said.

On Aug. 15, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump met at Elmendorf-Richardson Air Force Base in Alaska. The meeting lasted about three hours.