New Delhi: The United States has halted any area of cooperation with Moscow, and Washington does not talk about stabilizing relations with Russia, Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said in a televised interview with media on Wednesday.
“No one in Washington is now talking about how to stabilize and develop bilateral relations. Here Russia has acquired the status of an adversary, one of those monsters that must be destroyed,” he said. “At present, all areas of cooperation are frozen.”
Antonov said that Washington is not ready to sever diplomatic relations with Moscow, considering it inexpedient. He added that a new US ambassador to Moscow is likely to be appointed soon.
“Americans argue at the political level that it is inexpedient to completely break off diplomatic relations and they think it necessary to have their representatives in Moscow. By the way, it was recently announced that the appointment of a new ambassador to Moscow may be expected soon,” he said.
Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, relations reached the lowest point since the Cuban Missile Crisis. Mutual sanctions imposed in 2014 were significantly expanded by the US and its allies following the invasion, including several state-owned banks and oligarchs.
(Vinayak)