In a Nov. 9 interview with Interfax covered by Izvestia, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov warned that Moscow could sever diplomatic relations with Washington, if the latter persists in its hostile policies toward Russia. This past June, Ryabkov warned that Washington’s increasingly hawkish posture toward Russia was making any diplomatic contacts practically “impossible.” When asked to clarify this position, he said that while there was no scenario that would make Russia “automatically” cut ties with the West, but that this option is “undoubtedly” on the table, reported RT, mistakenly attributing the interview to Izvestia. “We never take escalatory steps of this kind without provocation, but I admit to the possibility of this action if, in an attempt to put pressure on us, the West throws away the last shreds of decency,” he told Interfax.
When asked what U.S. actions could make Russia further downgrade ties, he mentioned U.S. attempts to confiscate Russia’s frozen assets, as well as “dramatic and further escalatory actions leading to a worsening of the situation on the contact line” in Ukraine. Ryabkov noted that there are a “number of plots that the West continues to discuss” that could escalate the conflict. For instance, Kiev has for months been pushing the U.S. and its allies to lift a ban on strikes deep inside Russia with Western-supplied long-range weapons.
