The United States is "one step away" to lose the Cold War. This was stated by the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev.
At the plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum, he pointed out that "at one point the United States believed it had won the Cold War. This was a very serious misconception." He added that not only did they not win it, but they were "one step away from losing it".
Medvedev made his statement after Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced that Russia was considering various options to respond to "hostile actions by the West," including downgrading diplomatic relations.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's peace proposal for Ukraine is sensitive to time and the conditions for negotiations may be worse for Ukraine next time, Medvedev also warned, quoted by TASS.
So if circumstances change, the agreement can be concluded on other terms, he warned.
According to Medvedev, the proposal is based on two positions.
"As you know, there is a caveat that the circumstances that led to the contract must remain the same. Or the clause rebus sic stantibus", he continued. "There are changes on the ground and there are changes in the Constitution of the Russian Federation. This should be taken into account. And, of course, what the president said, namely that Ukraine should declare neutrality and not join the hostile military alliance.
Regarding the confiscation of Russian assets abroad, Medvedev pointed out that it could be considered a legal reason for declaring war.
"Theft of sovereign assets can generally be qualified as aggression under certain conditions," he emphasized. "And even if it becomes a casus belli, because the right to individual and collective self-defense can arise in response," he noted.
"We will have to take measures in accordance with the principle of reciprocity," Medvedev added.