Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Sunday that the United States is finding it hard to convince Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and NATO allies to support peace efforts.

He spoke after several failed attempts to set up another meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump. The summit was meant to follow their August 15 talks in Anchorage, Alaska. That meeting discussed a peace deal but ended without results.

Lavrov told RIA Novosti, “The Americans assured us back then (at the Alaska summit) that they would ensure Zelenskyy would not hinder the peace process. Apparently, certain difficulties have arisen on this issue.”

He also claimed, “Brussels and London are trying to persuade Washington to abandon its intention to resolve the crisis through political and diplomatic means and fully engage in efforts to exert military pressure on Russia.”

Lavrov said Western nations were pushing Washington to join what he called the “war party.”

Moscow stays firm on its red lines

Lavrov said Moscow would not compromise on its key positions. He stressed that Russia’s territorial integrity and the choices made by residents of Crimea, Donbass, and Novorossiya “are not negotiable.”

“We are now awaiting confirmation from the United States that the Anchorage agreements remain in force,” he added.

Putin has said several times that Russia wants a long-term solution, not a temporary ceasefire. He believes peace can only come after resolving what Russia sees as the root causes — NATO’s expansion and the mistreatment of Russian-speaking people in Ukraine.

Lavrov said he spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on October 20 to prepare for a planned Putin-Trump meeting in Budapest. The summit was later cancelled because Moscow demanded a political settlement before any ceasefire.

Russia hits Ukraine’s energy grid again

At the same time, Russia launched another massive attack on Ukraine. The Ukrainian air force said it shot down 406 drones and nine missiles out of 458 drones and 45 missiles fired overnight into Saturday.

Experts warned the attacks could cripple energy systems and cause heating shortages during winter. Russia has targeted Ukraine’s power and heating networks since the war began, damaging much of its civilian infrastructure.

Ukraine’s energy firm Naftogaz said Saturday’s strike was the ninth large attack on gas systems since early October. The Kyiv School of Economics estimated that the strikes shut down half of Ukraine’s natural gas production.

Fears of freezing cities

Ukraine’s top energy expert Oleksandr Kharchenko warned that Kyiv could face disaster if its heating plants stop working for several days in freezing weather.

“If Kyiv’s two power and heating plants went offline for more than three days when temperatures fall below minus 10C, the capital would face a ‘technological disaster,’” Kharchenko said.

He urged cities to make backup plans to keep buildings warm if central heating fails.