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Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov issued stark warnings to Western nations on Saturday, threatening a "decisive response" to any aggression while delivering a wide-ranging speech to the United Nations General Assembly that touched on NATO tensions, Middle East conflicts, and Iran sanctions.
The diplomatic escalation comes after U.S. President Donald Trump recently backed calls for NATO forces to shoot down Russian aircraft that violate alliance airspace, marking a significant hardening of Western military posture toward Moscow.
"Russia is being accused of almost planning to attack the North Atlantic alliance and the European Union countries," Lavrov told the assembled diplomats. "Russia has never had and does not have any such intentions. However, any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response."
The remarks represent Moscow's most direct warning to NATO members in recent months, as tensions continue to simmer over military activities near alliance borders. Russia has consistently denied aggressive intentions toward NATO while maintaining that it will defend itself against what it perceives as Western provocations.
Lavrov's address also targeted Western diplomatic efforts regarding Iran, accusing allied nations of deliberately undermining negotiations through sanctions policy. The Russian diplomat criticized the expected reimposition of UN sanctions on Tehran, describing Western actions as sabotage of constructive diplomatic solutions.
"The rejection of a Russian bid to extend the deadline finally exposed the West's policy of sabotaging the pursuit of constructive solutions in the UN Security Council, as well as its desire to extract unilateral concessions from Tehran through blackmail and pressure," Lavrov stated.
The Iranian sanctions dispute reflects broader disagreements between Russia and Western powers over Middle East policy, with Moscow frequently opposing U.S. and European approaches to regional conflicts.
In his most expansive critique, Lavrov accused Israel of threatening regional stability through military operations across multiple countries. The Russian foreign minister condemned what he described as Israeli aggression spanning from Palestine to Iran.
"Israel's illegal use of force against the Palestinians and aggressive actions against Iran, Qatar, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq today threaten to blow up the entire Middle East," Lavrov declared.
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