“Of course not. What is there to talk about with him?” Ryabkov told the Sputnik news agency on the sidelines of the Eurasian Women’s Forum being held in St. Petersburg.

Lavrov and Blinken will participate next week, in New York, in the General Debate, one of the key events scheduled by the UN within the framework of the High Level Week 2024.

Asked about the impact of the November 5th presidential elections in the United States on the prospects for the negotiation process on Ukraine, the Deputy Minister said he did not believe that the internal calendar of the United States has any importance. “They should take care of their own conduct, make a realistic assessment of what is happening, heed our warnings, including the risks of continuing the escalation, and literally keep all their satellites and, of course, their clients in Kiev at bay,” the diplomat added.

Regarding the possible tightening of US sanctions against the Russian oil industry, Ryabkov suggested “not overestimating the importance.” “The key links in our energy sector have been under sanctions for a long time. These sanctions are absolutely illegitimate, they emanate from the impotence of the United States, which believes itself to be the master of the world,” he said.

The deputy minister added that “outside of sanctions, threats and pressure, there has long been nothing left in the arsenal of US foreign policy.” “They are a reflection of the complete decomposition of the system that will eventually break down on them,” he said.

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