Kathrine Frich
Recent remarks from Moscow point to renewed friction in relations with Washington.
Russian officials say actions taken by the United States are at odds with its public messaging.
Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, voiced his frustration in an interview broadcast this week.
Conflicting messages
Lavrov said Washington’s recent sanctions and other measures contradict repeated US statements about improving ties and expanding cooperation.
Speaking to Russia Today television, he argued that such steps undermine claims of a shared economic future.
“All this does not fit in very well with the statements about the bright common economic future and investment cooperation,” Lavrov said, according to EFE, as cited by Agerpres.
He noted that US sanctions imposed over recent years remain unchanged. Lavrov added that new restrictions have gone even further.
New sanctions
According to the Russian foreign minister, Washington recently imposed fresh measures on major Russian energy firms.
He described the sanctions against Lukoil and Rosneft as unprecedented in scale.
“Moreover, for the first time, new, very strong sanctions were imposed against our largest oil companies, Lukoil and Rosneft. And this two or three weeks after the meeting (between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump) in Anchorage, which surprised the president (Putin),” Lavrov said.
He recalled that the Anchorage talks had been presented as constructive. Lavrov said Russia believed progress was possible after those discussions.
Ukraine and Cuba
Lavrov stated that both sides agreed in Alaska that “Russia supported the US proposal on resolving the Ukrainian crisis.”
He said Moscow then expected Washington to take diplomatic steps.
“After that, we expected the United States to convene a conference, some kind of Peace Council. But what followed were sanctions against Lukoil and Rosneft ,” he said.
He also referred to a recent US document on Cuba, claiming it framed the island as a threat partly because of Russia’s actions.
“The US forbids everyone from buying oil and gas. And they say: Russian oil and gas will be replaced by American oil and liquefied natural gas,” Lavrov said, questioning how sanctions align with talk of “profitable business.”
Broader context
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for ending the war in Ukraine and has suggested expanding economic ties with Russia.
He has spoken of doing “big business with the USA, which is thriving.”
Russia and the United States held several meetings in 2025 and early 2026 aimed at easing tensions.
Lavrov’s remarks coincided with the expiry of the New START nuclear arms treaty, after Washington did not formally respond to Moscow’s proposal for a one-year extension.
The pact had capped deployed strategic nuclear warheads and delivery systems on both sides.
Sources: EFE, Agerpres, Digi24
