News Digest

Russia’s Lavrov says icy relationship with U.S. needs ‘reset 2.0’

Moscow called on Sunday for a new “reset 2.0” in relations with Washington, saying the situation in Ukraine that had led to Western sanctions against Russia was improving thanks to Kremlin peace initiatives. Washington and Brussels accuse Moscow of supporting a pro-Russian rebellion in east Ukraine and have imposed sanctions, which they have repeatedly tightened since Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula in March. The conflict has brought relations between Moscow and the West to their lowest level since the end of the Cold War.

The current U.S. administration is destroying today much of the cooperation structure that it created itself along with us. Most likely, something more will come up: a reset No. 2 or a reset 2.0.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov

Shortly after President Barack Obama took office in 2009, his then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton presented Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with a red “reset” button intended to signal a fresh start to relations that had been strained under Obama’s predecessor George W. Bush. Western countries say thousands of Russian troops have fought in Ukraine and accuse Moscow of sending weapons, including a surface-to-air missile used to shoot down a Malaysian airliner over rebel-held territory in July. Moscow denies participating in the conflict or arming the rebels.