Lavrov complains about Ukraine's unstable position at peace talks

MOSCOW

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov complained Thursday about Ukraine's unstable position at peace talks.

Following a meeting with his Bahraini counterpart Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani in Moscow, Lavrov said the Ukrainian military tortures Russian prisoners of war, films it and publishes the footage on the internet.

"We drew attention to the facts that emerged the other day -- the Ukrainian side, the negotiators are starting to move away from their own proposals (they were generally positively received), and create new provocations, as it was in the settlement of Bucha, and carry out absolutely outrageous atrocities,” he said. “The video captures what the Nazis did from the Azov battalions with Russian prisoners of war.”

Lavrov said Bahrain’s king spoke in favor of giving additional impetus to a peace deal and his initiative takes into account the necessity to provide European security equal for everyone.

The Russia-Ukraine war, which started Feb. 24, has drawn international outrage, with the EU, US, and UK, among others, implementing tough financial sanctions on Moscow.

At least 1,611 civilians have been killed in Ukraine and 2,227 injured, according to UN estimates, with the true figure feared to be far higher.

More than 4.3 million Ukrainians have fled to other countries, with millions more internally displaced, according to the UN refugee agency.