Russia ready for 'worst scenarios' in relations with US

MOSCOW

Russia on Thursday said it wants good relations with the US but remains ready for “the worst scenarios.”

Despite all the unfriendly moves by Washington, President Vladimir Putin would prefer “building good relations” between the two countries, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters in the capital Moscow.

“In general, despite all the harsh statements and hostile expressions from Washington, President Putin remains a consistent supporter of building good relations with the US, at least in those areas that are beneficial to us,” he said.

“In the development of our bilateral relations, we are always ready to go as far as our partners are ready to go.”

His comments came amid American media reports that President Joe Biden’s administration has completed a review of “Russia’s misdeeds,” including alleged meddling in the 2020 elections and cyberattacks.

Washington will soon announce new sanctions against Moscow, which may include, among other measures, personal sanctions and expulsion of diplomats, according to the reports.

Peskov stressed that Russia does not pose “a threat to anyone,” including the US, but the unpredictability of Washington’s actions has pushed Moscow to be ready for worst-case scenarios.

“We have never been and are not a threat to anyone. But, of course, we will never allow anyone, including the US, to threaten us, dictate something to us, and infringe on our interests,” he asserted.

“The hostility and unpredictability of the actions of the American side, in general, obliges us to be prepared for the worst scenarios. When you have a fairly aggressive, unpredictable interlocutor, you are always in a mobilized state.”

Separately, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Washington’s policy on Russia is a “dead end.”

“The absolutely dead-end US line toward Russia does not bring any result in terms of the goals that were announced when the sanctions were imposed,” he said at a news conference in Nur-Sultan, the capital of Kazakhstan.

“This situation has been repeated many times. These actions convince us only of one thing; that we must rely on ourselves because neither the US nor its allies are reliable partners.”