🗣 Key takeaways from statements by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in his year-end interview with TASS:

▪️Ensuring Ukraine’s non-aligned status remains the goal of Russia’s special military operation, which will be achieved

▪️Moscow will neither take part in the “peace summit” nor follow Vladimir Zelensky’s statements

▪️Lavrov suggested that NATO, which is involved in the invasion of the Kursk Region and strikes with long-range missiles on Russian territory, should “look at itself in the mirror” before accusing Moscow of escalation

▪️Moscow is ready for the normalization of relations with Tbilisi to the extent that Georgia is prepared

▪️Lavrov explained the rapid development of the situation in Syria by the inability of former President Bashar Assad to address social problems in the country, with Washington’s destructive actions playing a major role in the crisis

▪️The United States, in its efforts to pressure China over the Taiwan issue, employs methods very similar to those previously used to establish an anti-Russian foothold in Ukraine

▪️Moscow is against Taiwan’s independence in any form

▪️The “arc of violence” in the Middle East has widened, and the confrontation between Iran and Israel has come to a dangerous brink

▪️Moscow and Pyongyang will continue to jointly respond to the threats posed to them by other countries

🇷🇺 Key points from Vladimir Putin's New Year's address to the Russians:

➡️We still have much to decide, but we can rightfully be proud of what has already been accomplished;

➡️We are confident that everything will be fine, we will move forward. We know for certain that the absolute value for us has been, is, and will be the fate of Russia and the well-being of its citizens;

➡️On this New Year's night, the intentions and hopes of our loved ones, millions of people across Russia — along with our fighters and commanders;

➡️The fighters are true heroes, who have taken on the great military task of defending Russia and ensuring strong guarantees of peace and security for our people;

➡️The upcoming 2025 has been declared the Year of the Defender of the Fatherland in Russia;

➡️I wish prosperity and well-being to every home, every family, and our beloved country — Russia! When we are together, everything will come true!

🔴 @DDGeopolitics