Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Thursday that US efforts to control global oil and energy markets are at the core of what he described as "aggression against Iran."
Speaking in an interview with RT Arabic, Lavrov said remarks by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio about the low prospects for a near-term settlement in Ukraine were surprising given proposals discussed at a presidential summit in Anchorage, Alaska, last year.
According to Lavrov, Russia accepted US proposals discussed in Anchorage last August that were aimed at halting hostilities and launching broader political negotiations.
"It was very strange when, after we agreed to the US' proposal in Anchorage, they began changing their position," Lavrov said. "If the US had genuinely promoted its own initiative, I think we would already have been at the negotiating table and military actions would have ceased."
Lavrov said Moscow remains ready for negotiations with Ukraine but does not see similar readiness from Kyiv.
He also argued that there was little difference between the approaches of the US and Europe toward the conflict, citing continued Western support for Kyiv.
Commenting on NATO, Lavrov said Secretary General Mark Rutte had openly supported Ukraine's future membership in the alliance despite what he described as US objections.
The minister also claimed that European leaders were backing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy because Ukraine was fighting Russia on behalf of broader Western interests.
Turning to the Middle East, Lavrov said one objective of US and Israeli actions against Iran was to disrupt a process of rapprochement between Tehran and Arab states.
He argued that proposals related to control of the Strait of Hormuz reflected broader efforts to influence global energy markets.
"This is all about oil and global energy markets again," Lavrov said.
The minister said a future non-aggression agreement and confidence-building measures between Iran and Arab countries could help stabilize the region.
Lavrov also warned that military pressure on Iran could undermine Tehran's commitment to remaining a non-nuclear-weapon state.
"If anything could change attitudes in the Iranian leadership and in Iran as a whole regarding adherence to the principle of not possessing nuclear weapons, it is precisely such aggression," he said.
On global affairs, Lavrov criticized the reported US decision not to invite South Africa to the upcoming G20 summit in Miami, saying the move posed a serious risk to the future of the grouping.
"This is simply unacceptable," he stressed.
