MOSCOW, December 6. /TASS/. A peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian conflict is possible only if Kiev abandons its plans to join NATO, closes Western military bases on the country’s territory and cancels exercises involving foreign troops, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson.

“No NATO. Absolutely. No military bases, no military exercises on Ukrainian soil with the participation of foreign troops. And this is something that Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated. But of course, he said it in April 2022, now some time has passed and the realities on the ground have to be taken into account and accepted. The realities on the ground are not only the line of contact, but also the changes in the Russian Constitution after referendums were held in the Donetsk, Lugansk Republics and the Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions. And they are now part of the Russian Federation, according to the Constitution. And this is a reality,” Lavrov pointed out.

The foreign minister emphasized that Russia cannot tolerate the situation “when the [Ukrainian] legislation prohibits the Russian language, the Russian media, the Russian culture, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.” “This is a violation of the obligations of Ukraine under the UN Charter, and something must be done about it. And since this Russophobic legislative offensive started in 2017, the West has been completely silent, and it is silent until now, of course, we would have to pay attention to this in a very special way,” the top diplomat added.

On June 14, Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with the Foreign Ministry set out the country’s conditions for settling the situation in Ukraine. Among them are the withdrawal of the Ukrainian armed forces from Donbass and Novorossiya and Kiev’s refusal to join NATO. In addition, Russia wants all Western sanctions against it lifted and demands that Ukraine commit to a non-aligned and nuclear-free status. Putin indicated that if Ukraine and the West refuse these conditions, they could change in the future. Kiev rejected the Russian peace plan. After the massive Ukrainian attack on the Kursk Region that began on August 6, the Russian leader said that negotiations with a government that attacks civilians are pointless. On December 4, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there are currently no grounds for Russia-Ukraine negotiations.