Neither contender is willing to course-correct bilateral relations, the top diplomat said
Russia is interested in policies, not personalities, and has no expectation that the US intends to change its antagonistic stance, regardless of who wins the November presidential election, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Brazilian media on Tuesday.
The top diplomat was asked whether Moscow preferred a return of Donald Trump to the White House next year over President Joe Biden staying in office. The interviewer from the Globo media group cited opinions that a new Trump presidency would make it easier to wrap up the Ukraine conflict.
“The ruling elites in the US consider Russia an enemy and a threat regardless of their political affiliation,” Lavrov said.
While Biden “did nothing” in four years to improve relations with Russia, “we do not delude ourselves into expecting the anti-Russian course of the US to change anytime soon,” the minister added.
READ MORE: I want Biden to win – Putin
Claims and counterclaims over which presidential candidate is a “favorite” of Moscow have been an element of US electoral cycles for decades. The ongoing race, in which Biden and Trump are presumed to be nominated by their respective parties, is no different.