'A lot of lies': Kaja Kallas criticises Russian FM Lavrov following G20 meetings
British Foreign Minister Ed Miliband said he had told Lavrov in the plenary that "he should have the courage to tell Putin that Russia will not win this war."
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas denounced Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as a liar during G20 talks in Atlanta on Friday, specifically regarding the Ukraine war. Kallas stated that she confronted Lavrov on these issues head-on during the meeting. Lavrov, in turn, claimed that Europeans had spread false narratives, to which Kallas responded by challenging those false narratives.
European officials also leveraged the opportunity to put additional pressure on Moscow in their efforts to secure a ceasefire in the Black Sea, though Lavrov reportedly resisted these attempts. British Foreign Minister Ed Miliband expressed his disappointment in Lavrov, urging him to have the courage to tell Russian President Vladimir Putin that Russia would not prevail in the ongoing war.
Miliband also confronted Lavrov about a recent deadly attack on a Dnipro railway, asserting that Russia was the aggressor in the conflict that began in February 2022.
At a press conference on Friday, Lavrov welcomed the US willingness to engage in dialogue with Moscow but criticized Europe's "arrogant boycott." Several officials reportedly refused to pose for a family photo with Lavrov, leading US organizers to cancel the photo. G20 meetings occurred just days before the US midterm elections, which could alter the balance of power in Congress for President Donald Trump's final two years in office.
The US State Department announced on Friday that Washington had approved a package of 500 Patriot PAC-3 interceptors, valued at $2.1 billion, for Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for the US support, calling it "strong," but warned that the delivery of these interceptors would likely take years.
Zelenskyy emphasized the need for a resolution in the interim period, expressing a desire for a solution during a time when the need for PAC-3 interceptors is genuine. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also met with Lavrov on the sidelines of the G20 in Atlanta.
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