NATO alliance is bringing more destruction and suffering, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday.
The course towards a reckless enlargement of NATO has devalued the basic principles of OSCE's existence, and the enlargement was pursued quite consciously and deliberately Lavrov said.
Stressing Russia tried to keep the Euro-Atlantic situation under control to the last moment, Lavrov said that they are "building up their forces and assets, moving them towards Russia."
"16 countries were members of NATO in 1991, now there are 30, and Sweden and Finland are on the brink."
Lavrov highlighted that President Vladimir Putin made a proposal last year on security guarantees both for Russia and Ukraine.
"We proposed non-expansion of NATO and security pact for Ukraine and everyone else."
"Washington and OSCE had a real chance for de-escalation," he said.
"But OSCE structures are fully subordinated to the US and Brussels."
"They want to keep Russians out of Europe, they have the whole EU under their control," he stressed, adding there are maneuvers conducted to list Russia openly as an adversary.
"We were told every country has the right to join NATO."
Lavrov accused NATO of whipping up tensions near China in a way that posed risks for Russia.
"The South China Sea is now becoming one of those regions where NATO is not averse, as they once did in Ukraine, to escalating tensions," Lavrov told a news conference.
"We know how seriously China takes such provocations, not to mention Taiwan and the Taiwan Strait, and we understand that NATO's playing with fire in these regions carries threats and risks for the Russian Federation. It is as close to our shores and to our seas as Chinese territory," he said.
Lavrov said that was why Russia was developing military cooperation with China and conducting joint exercises.
"The fact that NATO members under the leadership of the United States are trying to create an explosive situation there, in the wake of Europe, is well understood by everyone," he said.
Lavrov did not provide evidence to back his assertions, but alluded to the formation of the AUKUS alliance between the United States, Britain and Australia.
He also accused NATO of trying to drag India into what he called an anti-Russian and anti-Chinese alliance at a time when he said the West was attempting to squeeze out Russian influence.
Lavrov also added that OSCE, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) has a huge backlog of problems.
The top Russian diplomat, slamming the West, said that it was counting on Russia not to regain its position either in Europe or in the world.
"It expected the whole world to live by the rules of the liberal democracy."
Saying the West is trying to privatize and seize OSCE, Lavrov added: When Macron proposed the European Political community, he invited everyone except Russia and Belarus.
"OSCE is becoming a marginal entity," Lavrov said, adding Europe's security space is finally fragmenting.
Lavrov also said that there will be no resumption of previous relations with the West.
Russia's foreign minister said that no one has ever done as much damage to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) as the current Polish chairmanship.
Lavrov said the Swedish chairmanship in 2021 started preparing the "OSCE's funeral," with Poland following its lead by "digging a grave for this organization." Both countries are among the numerous Western countries firmly opposed to Russia's war on Ukraine, which started in February. Since the war began, Sweden has also moved to join NATO, against Russian opposition.
"The Swedes were the chairmen last year, back then they openly began to act not as honest brokers, but as active participants in Western policy in the OSCE, subordinating the OSCE to the interests of the United States and Brussels.
"In fact, it was the Swedes who began to prepare the OSCE funeral. And our Polish neighbors have been diligently digging a grave for this organization all this year, destroying the remnants of the culture of consensus ... No one has ever done such damage to the OSCE, being in charge," he said.
Last month, Russia slammed Poland's refusal to issue a visa to Lavrov so he could take part in a meeting of OSCE foreign ministers, which begins today in the city of Lodz.
Lavrov added that the OSCE is losing its significance, and its authority and competencies "are being eroded in every possible way."
Through the efforts of the EU, parallel structures and meetings are being created, such as the European Political Community, whose first meeting took place on Oct. 6 in the Czech Republic, he said.
The West has shown that it will build security not with Russia, but against it, Lavrov stressed, adding that in response Russia and Belarus "have taken all security measures to be ready for any options." Belarus has been Russia's chief supporter of the Ukraine war.
Turning to the deal on grain exports reached this summer in Istanbul, Lavrov blasted "lies" that Western sanctions do not restrict the export of Russian agricultural products.
"Although there is no heading 'fertilizers and food from Russia' on the sanctions lists … (there is) is a ban on bank transactions, first of all for our leading bank, Rosselkhozbank, which is disconnected from SWIFT, namely, it serves more than 90% of all our food supplies.
"The sanctions also include a ban on the access of our vessels to European ports, and foreign vessels to Russian ports. And also the sanctions relate to the freight of ships and insurance of ships," he said.
Lavrov praised UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for his efforts to lift sanctions that block food exports.
"But it is already the fifth month after the signing of this (grain) deal. The reaction of the US and the EU is extremely slow, our UN colleagues have to literally 'knock out' some exceptions every time," he said.
On July 22, Türkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed a landmark agreement in Istanbul to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which had been paused in February due to Russia's war on Ukraine.
Beginning Nov. 19, the deal was extended for another 120 days.
