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NEW DELHI – A boisterous international audience of academics, diplomats and businesspeople cheered and groaned as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov presented Moscow’s take on the war in Ukraine, reflecting global divisions over the crisis.
To loud applause, Lavrov stressed what he described as a “double standard” in questions put to him about the war, especially when compared to the United States’ own military interventions over the past few decades.
“Are you interested in those years? [in] What’s going on in Iraq, what’s going on in Afghanistan?” he asked his interviewer, pausing to applause. “[You] believe that the United States has the right to declare a threat to its national interests anywhere in the world, as it has done in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya, Syria… and you don’t ask them questions?”
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However, his claim that Moscow was the victim and not the aggressor of the conflict elicited laughter and groans from the audience. “The war was waged against us with the help of the Ukrainian people,” he said, amid audible groans and mockery.
Lavrov made the comments during the Raisina Dialogue – one of the few major international conferences to which Russian officials are still invited after the February 24, 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Hosted by Indian think tank Observer Research Foundation, it also enabled an audience with a rare mix of loyalties in an increasingly polarized world.
The audience reaction represents the divided views in India and many other parts of the world on the war. On Thursday, the meeting of foreign ministers of the Group of 20, which represents the world’s largest economies, in New Delhi failed to release a joint agreement amid opposition from China and Russia over the language of the Ukraine war. Lavrov has traveled extensively across Asia, Africa and the Middle East to rally support for the Russian perspective on the conflict.
India in particular has carved itself a position between the two world powers as it also seeks to represent a collective voice of the Global South on the world stage. With a strong historical relationship with Russia dating back to its independence, it has increased its imports of Russian crude oil to record levels and maintained its dependence on the Kremlin’s military supplies. India has consistently abstained from all United Nations votes calling for an end to the Russian invasion.
Lavrov’s criticism of what he called Western hypocrisy and its selective focus on human rights has been well received in India, where officials have also complained about double standards.
In December, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar was asked about the lack of condemnation of the Russian invasion. “I can give you many cases of countries that have violated the sovereignty of another country,” he replied. “If I were to ask where Europe stands with many of them, I’m afraid I would remain silent for a long time.”
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At the Raisina Dialogue, Lavrov made it clear that Russia would no longer rely on Western actors and would instead focus its energy policy on “reliable” and “credible” partners like India and China. He said the world is not affected by Russia’s actions but by the West’s reactions to Russia.
He told his interviewer, Sunjoy Joshi, chairman of the Observer Research Foundation, that he should “do his homework” before asking him questions about the Russian invasion. “You’re the leader of such a respected audience, I don’t see why you don’t get that,” he said, to widespread chuckles in the room.
He kept interrupting Joshi, repeating, “Wait a second, wait a second,” while the audience laughed.
He said this G-20 is all about what to do with Ukraine, and he has repeatedly asked if the group has ever been so concerned about events in Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan and Yugoslavia.
“No one cared about anything except the financial and macroeconomic policies that the G-20 formed for,” he said. “If that’s not a double standard, then I’m not a minister.”