Sergey Lavrov, Foreign Minister of Russia: The international agreements, which provided stability for a long time, are now being destroyed by the U.S. above all others. The U.S., again, almost single-handedly refuses to begin talks on the suggestion put forward by Russia and China at the Conference on Disarmament and Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space. As for the plans announced by the Pentagon, besides the fact, as you know, that they've lowered the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, and they're working on making low-yield nuclear weapons, weapons for the battlefield, shall we say. I don't yet see any evidence that the Europeans can oppose the attempts to turn their territory into a ground for a potential military conflict. In exception of, perhaps, the initiatives put forward by President Macron. We consider such initiatives to be sensible and worth paying attention to and discussing, addressing the fact that it's time that a system of national defense, a security architecture, was built in Europe, together with Russia, and not against Russia. And, at the same time, France and many other European countries begin to realize that America wants to use them for their own benefit.
- Sergey Viktorovich, in this situation, is China our ally, partner, support? This pivot to the East of ours, which was declared a long time ago, is it a pivot from the West? After all, many people say that the threat of war is rising. But now we sort of promised China that we would work together on an early warning system…
- The Missile Early Warning System.
- Yes…
“The Missile Early Warning System, or MEWS, detects intercontinental ballistic missile launches. Using satellites and ground radar stations, the complex evaluates where warheads were launched from and when they'll reach their target. This data is used to make an important decision, determine whether the launch of a nuclear missile actually occurred, and, if so, find out how much time is left to retaliate against an aggressor and try to mitigate incoming damage. As of now, only Russia and the US own such a system. However, early this October, during a session of the Valdai International Club, Vladimir Putin said that there was an agreement made with the PRC. Russia will help China create its own MEWS system. In the 1980s, Beijing made a failed attempt to create its own system. Under the contract, China will receive solutions for the system's software in the near future. It's too early to speak about the establishment of a joint data management platform, but if China uses the Russian technology, the exchange of information will become easier between the armed forces of both countries. The transmission of unique algorithms for decision-making about whether to retaliate implies a high degree of cooperation between the two countries.”
- Is China our ally now?
- When it comes to our relations with China, they had never been at such a high-quality, trust-based level, let me put it like that. In all the spheres — in the sphere of the economy, as a basis for our relations, in the sphere of promoting the interests of our countries in the global arena. If an alliance is understood to be a military alliance, then neither Russia nor China plans to create such a military alliance. It's mentioned in documents, by the way, including the documents accepted during the state visit of Xi Jinping to the Russian Federation this June. We're working to develop our relations, and the effort to do so isn't aimed against any other country. But, if an alliance means defending international law, defending the principles of the world order, which are based on the Charter of the United Nations; if it means opposing the attempts to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, particularly by using force — then yes, in defending these principles, China and Russia are indisputable allies. Among other things, we are allies with China in the matters which now call for a response in the sphere of the global economy, where methods of an obviously unfair, I'd even say dirty, competition are used. There are many examples. No one is immune. Even U.S. allies aren't immune to sanctions. It's sort of a billy club that is waved without any forethought whatsoever. But, as President Putin said many times, it's a massive mistake of the U.S. because yes, many countries are weaker; they will obey. In a medium- and long-term perspective, it will work against the dollar because the U.S. has proven that the dollar is an unreliable currency. Everyone who uses the dollar for maintaining economic relations with other countries may at any moment become a hostage of the geopolitical intentions of the U.S.
