Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement and answers to media questions following the Russia-ASEAN Conference
📍 Jakarta, July 13, 2023
#RussiaASEAN meeting
💬 We have held the annual Ministerial Meeting between Russia and ASEAN Member Countries once again. The meeting involved the Secretary-General of this organisation. We prioritised such aspects as high technologies, digitalisation and smart cities. We had a separate discussion of our collaboration on countering new challenges and threats. Cooperation between #ASEAN and the Eurasian Economic Union (#EAEU) is another issue.
We are expecting ASEAN representatives at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok in September 2023. We have drafted specific plans aiming to expand practical cooperation in various fields and in the interests of all participants.
On #NATO policy in the Asia-Pacific region
💬 It is true that the ASEAN approaches are now going through a serious test because of the desire of the US and its allies to replace the ASEAN-centric security architecture in the Asia-Pacific region, which took shape over decades and suited everyone until recently, with their “Indo-Pacific strategies” and NATO expansion in this region.
Japan and South Korea already told that they are willing to deploy American nuclear weapons on their territory or to acquire their own. This is a seriously dangerous trend.
#JCPOA
💬 I am not very optimistic about the prospects of resuming the JCPOA. Another point is that, along with this stalled and withered process, the Iranians and the Americans are engaged in unofficial and direct contact below the radar on normalising their relations by unblocking Iran’s seized foreign reserves in exchange for deciding the fate of certain US citizens who were charged with breaking the law in Iran.
We will only welcome any improvement in these relations. Once again, this has little to do with the JCPOA.
Read in full
📍 Jakarta, July 13, 2023
#RussiaASEAN meeting
💬 We have held the annual Ministerial Meeting between Russia and ASEAN Member Countries once again. The meeting involved the Secretary-General of this organisation. We prioritised such aspects as high technologies, digitalisation and smart cities. We had a separate discussion of our collaboration on countering new challenges and threats. Cooperation between #ASEAN and the Eurasian Economic Union (#EAEU) is another issue.
We are expecting ASEAN representatives at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok in September 2023. We have drafted specific plans aiming to expand practical cooperation in various fields and in the interests of all participants.
On #NATO policy in the Asia-Pacific region
💬 It is true that the ASEAN approaches are now going through a serious test because of the desire of the US and its allies to replace the ASEAN-centric security architecture in the Asia-Pacific region, which took shape over decades and suited everyone until recently, with their “Indo-Pacific strategies” and NATO expansion in this region.
Japan and South Korea already told that they are willing to deploy American nuclear weapons on their territory or to acquire their own. This is a seriously dangerous trend.
#JCPOA
💬 I am not very optimistic about the prospects of resuming the JCPOA. Another point is that, along with this stalled and withered process, the Iranians and the Americans are engaged in unofficial and direct contact below the radar on normalising their relations by unblocking Iran’s seized foreign reserves in exchange for deciding the fate of certain US citizens who were charged with breaking the law in Iran.
We will only welcome any improvement in these relations. Once again, this has little to do with the JCPOA.
Read in full