Russian Foreign Minister says West policies ‘hysterical’May 14, 2014 - 18:40 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Russia will be obliged to take retaliatory measures if the West continues its sanctions policy, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday, May 14, according to RIA Novosti. “If the West continues these absolutely non-professional hysterical policies, we would have to think what we can do in return,” Lavrov said in an interview with Bloomberg. The minister, however, said that Russia was not looking for confrontations and would not like to parrot Western countries’ behavior. “We are not looking for confrontation and we don’t want to mimic the hectic gestures made by Washington, Brussels, some other capitals, reluctantly most of them, by the way,” Lavrov said. The Russian diplomat at the same time claimed that "all threats coming from Washington, as well as European capitals, are highly unprofessional, far from reality and driven only by the desire to seek revenge." “I don’t think that economic sanctions are being considered seriously … The discussions, as I can perceive them, they are based on the desire to get revenge, which is always very bad for politicians, which is not professional for anyone who wants to be engaged in serious politics, and revenge would probably have some effect, no doubt,” the Russian minister said. “If the West, just for the sake of revenge, is ready to sacrifice its reputation as a reliable partner for the entire world economy … it is up to them to decide. The entire world would think differently,” Lavrov added. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel. Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. |