Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has laid the blame for the Ukraine war on the United States.
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'American exceptionalism'
On Thursday 2 February, an interview with Lavrov was aired on Russian state TV channel RT. According to an English translation provided by the channel, Lavrov declared that 'American exceptionalism' is the 'main reason' for the war. He said:
This exceptionalism, this absolute conviction of their infallibility and superiority—I am certain that it is the main reason why we are now confronting the nations that wage a proxy war against us through the Kyiv regime.
According to Foreign Policy:
Most statements of 'American exceptionalism' presume that America’s values, political system, and history are unique and worthy of universal admiration. They also imply that the United States is both destined and entitled to play a distinct and positive role on the world stage.
Lavrov added that the US believes they must implement this 'exceptionalism' otherwise 'the world will end up in chaos'.
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Is the US trying to make everyone American?
Lavrov also claimed that America’s foreign policy 'to protect and defend the American way of life' disallows ethnic and cultural identity, which has the following consequence:
Just like they melted in a pot everyone who arrived in America, they now want to melt everyone else, so they essentially become Americans.
Finally, Lavrov slammed NATO for continuing to provide military and financial assistance to Ukraine:
The whole of NATO is fighting against us, and all those allegations and incantations that 'we are not fighting, but only arming'—this is ridiculous.
In a separate interview with the Rossiya 24 TV channel and the state-run news agency RIA Novosti also on Thursday, Lavrov accused the US of being behind the Nord Stream gas pipeline attack in September 2022.
Sources used:
- Newsweek: 'Top Russian Official Blames America's Values for Sparking Ukraine War'
- Foreign Policy: 'The Myth of American Exceptionalism'
- Newsweek: 'Sergei Lavrov Accuses U.S. of Nord Stream Pipeline Attack'
