🎙 Briefing by Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova (Moscow, January 15, 2026)

🔹 News conference by Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
🔹 #KievRegimeCrimes
🔹 Ukraine crisis
🔹 Torchlit procession in Lvov
🔹 London’s aggressive anti-Russia line
🔹 On the destruction of the monument to Soviet heroes in the Czech Republic
🔹 Certain statements by the Yad Vashem leadership

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#LavrovSchedule

On January 20, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will hold a high-profile news conference to review Russian diplomacy’s outcomes in 2025.

The news conference will be livestreamed on the Ministerial website and social media and translated into English, French, and Spanish.

#KievRegimeCrimes

The neo-Nazi Kiev regime continues to reveal its terrorist nature. From January 1 to 12, at least 152 Russian civilians were affected by Ukrainian shelling and drone attacks. 45 people were killed, including 3 children.

In the first minutes of 2026, in a premeditated attack, the armed forces of Ukraine used UAVs to hit a café and a hotel complex in the village of Khorly, Kherson Region, where families with children, a crowd of about 100 people, had come together to ring in the New Year. 29 people, including 2 children, were killed.

The Foreign Ministry provided an assessment of this barbaric atrocity by Ukrainian neo-Nazis on January 1.

#Ukraine #West

The fact that the West has no genuine interest in ending the conflict – just as it showed no desire for peace from the outset – is clearly demonstrated by the uninterrupted operation of Rzeszów Airport in Poland. Since 2022, it has served as a key logistics hub through which a continuous flow of military cargo has been delivered to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Observers note that the British and Canadian air forces, as well as private transport companies affiliated with the US military, are most active in these operations.

The European NATO member states’ actions aimed at saturating Kiev with military and financial resources speak far more eloquently about their true intentions than any hypocritical statements about a desire for peace. These actions speak louder than words, declarations, or diplomatic rhetoric.

#Britain #CoalitionOfTheWilling

For several months, we have observed a consistent escalation by Britain of aggressive and belligerent rhetoric against Russia.

For instance, on January 6 in Paris, on the sidelines of a gathering of the coalition of the willing, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, alongside French President Emmanuel Macron and head of the Kiev regime Zelensky, signed a declaration of intent providing for the deployment of so-called multinational forces – in essence, Western occupation troops – to Ukraine under the guise of ensuring “future peace agreements.”

❗️ We must warn that any attempts to realise this criminal scheme with the coalition of the willing will leave responsibility for the lives of British subjects entirely on London’s shoulders.

Our position remains unchanged and well-known – any foreign military contingents in Ukraine will be considered legitimate targets for the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The British component will be no exception.

#Finland #Militarisation #BalticRegion

On January 10, 2026, Helsinki’s decision to denounce the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction came into force.

Russia views this decision by the Finnish authorities as yet another manifestation of their destructive policy to militarise the country.

Russia reserves the right to respond to any hostile actions in a proportionate way, including by military and technical means, if necessary.

☦️ Happy Epiphany Day!

Today Russian Orthodox Christians celebrate the Epiphany, also known as the Baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Orthodox Christians in Russia believe that plunging into icy water, often in cross-shaped holes in lakes and rivers, from midnight on January 19th brings health, since any water source on this day is blessed. It also cleanses one’s spirit and soul.

The Epiphany Day is also a Russian folk holiday; everyone can participate regardless of their religious affiliation. Many Russians observe this practice for spiritual, cultural, or health reasons despite sub-zero temperatures.

#RussianCulture

#Outcomes2025

🎙 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's statement during his annual news conference on the Russian diplomacy outcomes in 2025 (January 20, 2026)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: The events of the first twenty days of 2026 have surpassed everything in terms of intensity that 2025 left behind.

We have witnessed unprecedented events – a blatant armed invasion by the US of Venezuela, resulting in dozens killed and wounded, as well as the seizure and forcible removal of the legitimate President of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro together with his spouse. At the same time, we are observing threats directed at Cuba and other countries of the Latin American and Caribbean region.

Of deep concern are the overt and openly declared attempts by external forces to destabilize the political situation in Iran. In particular, one such “political figure” of our time – the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas – recently stated that, by supporting protests, the international community, apparently meaning the EU, is seeking regime change in that country.

I will not even dwell on the aspiration of most Western countries to continue using the Kiev regime for armed confrontation with Russia. The goal of inflicting a “strategic defeat” on us is voiced less frequently now, but by all indications it remains present in the minds and plans of, above all, European leaders.

🇷🇺 Russia will defend its interests consistently – without encroaching on anyone’s legitimate rights, yet without allowing our own legitimate rights to be treated arbitrarily.

As for the theses used by the West with regard to our country in 2025, the “isolation” of Russia – as is obvious to everyone – did not happen, no matter how insistently our ill-wishers spoke of it.

❗️ Our position on Ukraine is that it is necessary to eliminate the root causes of this crisis, which the West for many years deliberately created in order to turn this country into a threat to our security, using it as a bulwark against Russia directly on our borders.

A major event in 2025 was the celebration marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War – the Parade on Red Square and the large number of foreign guests. We value everyone who personally took part in these celebrations or sent a special delegation.

👉 We are interested in contributing to de-escalation in all the hotspots referred to – be it Venezuela, and I would especially highlight the situation around Iran, which must be resolved on the basis of respect and Iran’s right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

We are convinced that, for a long-term settlement in the Middle East, it is finally necessary to implement the UN decision on the establishment of a Palestinian State. This criterion fully retains its relevance in light of the widely discussed Donald Trump's initiative to establish a “Peace Council”.

#Outcomes2025

🎙 Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during his annual news conference on the Russian diplomacy outcomes in 2025 (January 20, 2026)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: At a time when we are witnessing turbulent developments amid the strengthening of multipolarity, the issue on the agenda is dialogue on how to bring order to it. This will take a considerable amount of time, some say – an entire historical era. But this process is inevitable.

The fact that this is being recognized by the key players is confirmed, among other things, by the initiative of the US President to establish a “Peace Council”. We have recently received concrete proposals and a draft charter for this structure.

This initiative reflects the US understanding that even with its own foreign policy philosophy, it proceeds from the need to bring together a group of countries willing to cooperate in one area or another.

Some may object that the “Peace Council” has been conceived and announced in such a way that everyone would be expected to subordinate themselves to the US. This is indeed the situation Washington would like to see at present.

☝️ However, I can assure you that the Trump administration – for all the actions that are now widely discussed around the world – is an administration of pragmatists. It recognizes the need to not merely unite a large number of countries under its leadership, but also to fully take into account their legitimate interests.

I would stress once again that this position, this readiness and this understanding of the need to fully consider a partner’s interests are clearly reflected in the approaches of the Trump administration to the Ukrainian settlement. It is the only Western country prepared to address the task of eliminating the root causes of this conflict, which was largely created by President Trump’s predecessor – Joe Biden and his administration.

👉 This process is only at its very beginning. It will not be easy and will require the mobilization of all resources – the centres of growth and centres of influence I have mentioned. However, given goodwill – and we do see signs that such goodwill may take root – much can be achieved.

📺 Watch the news conference in full

Владимир Путин принимает участие в памятных мероприятиях, приуроченных к 82-й годовщине полного освобождения Ленинграда от фашистской блокады

Президент возложил цветы к мемориалу «Рубежный камень» на Невском пятачке. В этом месте – на небольшом трёхкилометровом участке фронта к югу от Ленинграда – Красная армия с первых дней блокады сдерживала численно превосходящие силы противника, не позволяя им приблизиться к городу.

Подробнее – на сайте Кремля.