Russia: Lavrov talks Donbass elections, Minsk and Syria support

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated the "Ukrainian authorities wanted to disrupt the implementation of the Minsk agreements," in regards to their conduct over the upcoming elections in the Donbass region, during a press conference with the South Sudanese Foreign Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin and the incoming Sudanese Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour, in Moscow, Thursday.

Lavrov also addressed the issue of Russian troops in Syria, saying "they have been there for many years; their presence there is associated with the supply of weapons to the Syrian army." The foreign minister qualified this by saying the Syrian Army "bears the brunt of the fight against terrorism."

Finally, Russia's top diplomat criticised the foreign policy of the West which leads to destabilisation, what Lavrov referred to as the "Libyan scenario." The Russian Foreign Ministry has criticised the interventions in the Middle East, as it has destabilised the region. "Some of Western partners are obsessed with the changing of undesirable regimes," he concluded.