Putin's war in Ukraine has 'not been worth it', Russian Ambassador to the UK tells LBC

5 December 2024, 18:14 | Updated: 5 December 2024, 18:15

Russia's war in Ukraine has "not been worth" the suffering and misery it has caused, the Russian Ambassador to the UK Andrei Kelin has told LBC's Andrew Marr.

Mr Kelin said the war could have been ended in 2022 if Boris Johnson had not thrown his support behind Ukraine.

Asked if the suffering and misery caused by the Russia-Ukraine war has been worth it, Mr Kelin replied: "No, I don't think so.

"We could have ended it in negotiations in April 2022 if not, Boris Johnson will come and say, 'Let's get out of this agreement, throw it away and you should fight with the Ukrainians.'"

Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, leading to a war of attrition that has dragged on for more than two and a half years and led to the deaths of around one million Ukrainians and Russians.

The ambassador added that Russia has "absolutely no ambition" to continue its war outside of Ukraine one it has achieved its goals.

Read more: Blinken and Lavrov clash on Ukraine at security meeting in Malta

US President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to end the war within 24 hours of his inauguration in January 20, discussing plans privately and publicly to cede large portions of Ukraine to Russia for the foreseeable future.

But speaking on Tonight with Andrew Marr on LBC, Mr Kelin also told Andrew that President-Elect Trump’s team now understands the war in Ukraine "is too complicated" to resolve "in 48 hours"

The Ambassador also told LBC that Russia will "do everything to avoid any [nuclear] escalation" and it is not Putin’s goal to take the whole of Ukraine and instead "liberate… four provinces in Ukraine".

Read more: Putin test-fires hypersonic missiles into Mediterranean posing fresh threat to West

Further asked if President-Elect Donald Trump’s claim that he can end the Russia-Ukraine war in a few days, taken seriously in Moscow, Mr Kelin replied: "I believe that Trump's team, by now, believes that the issue is too complicated to do it in 48 hours, or something like that.

"But we see and we do not have contact so far, we did not have contact with them, and they don't contact with us, but we clearly see that there is an attempt to elaborate certain scenarios.

"But these scenarios, they should be realistic to us. We do not want a freeze at all. We need a complex solution to the whole issue, to the whole problem."

On the NATO concerns that Russia will move to invade the Baltics, Moldova and Poland after Ukraine, Mr Kelin told LBC: "It is an absolutely senseless proposition.

"And they are only done, and I understand why, they just wanted to raise a spirit to ask people to donate more money for this fight in Ukraine, to raise more defence industry and so because, our President has said many times that we have no ambitions to go anyplace.

"We have to resolve the problem with Ukraine."

On reports that Russia has attempted to cut cables in an effort to engage in a grey war with the UK, Mr Kelin said: "No, you should not be concerned, because it's a pure fantasy.

"When I'm reading this story in the press, a special Bulgarian subject, that makes me laugh, of course."

Asked if he agrees with Head of the British Armed Forces Tony Radakin that we are now entering the third phase of nuclear confrontation, Mr Kelin told Andrew: "Well, actually we did not.

"Of course, the danger is present over there, and I will say, on the verge of something. I would say collapse, but on the verge of another escalation.

"But as for us, we will do everything to avoid any escalation for that. We are against very much raising stakes in this area. But unfortunately, it was the INF agreement has been ruined by Trump and his team."