Russia has shared a stark warning that their relationship with Britain could get worse after the appointing of Liz Truss as the new leader of the Conservative Party and next Prime Minister.
Reflecting on their relationship, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described their conversation as like a dialogue between deaf and mute people, complaining that facts had "bounced off" her.
Truss was one of many politicians who flew to Moscow at the start of 2022 in an effort to prevent an invasion of Ukraine.
A Russian newspaper reported that Truss, during their meeting, had inadvertently told Lavrov that Britain would never recognise Moscow's sovereignty over two Russian cities, Rostov and Voronezh, and had to be corrected by her ambassador.
The Kremlin seized on the error as an example of Western leaders being poorly informed. Britain dismissed that as propaganda and said Truss had simply misheard a question from Lavrov.
Russia also pounced on an earlier gaffe when Truss got mixed up between the Black and Baltic Seas, prompting foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova to complain of "the stupidity and ignorance of Anglo-Saxon politicians".
Speaking before the announcement that Truss had defeated Rishi Sunak in a contest to succeed Boris Johnson as Conservative Party leader and prime minister, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that relations with London might deteriorate further.
"I wouldn't like to say that things can change for the worse, because it's hard to imagine anything worse," he said when asked if Moscow expected a shift in ties.
"But unfortunately, this cannot be ruled out, given that the contenders for the post of British prime minister competed with each other in anti-Russian rhetoric, in threats to take further steps against our country, and so on. Therefore, I don’t think that we can hope for anything positive."
It is expected that Truss will maintain Britain's stance as one of the most active and vocal supporters of Ukraine, supplying it with weapons and training.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described their conversation as like a dialogue between deaf and mute people, complaining that facts had "bounced off" her.
Reuters
It is expected that Truss will maintain Britain's stance as one of the most active and vocal supporters of Ukraine, supplying it with weapons and training.
Victoria Jones
