The dollar rose to 75 rubles after the leadership of the Foreign Ministry assessed negotiations with the United States and NATO

The Russian ruble and stocks fell on Thursday after Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that there were no reasons to continue meetings with the US and its NATO allies to discuss security guarantees.

According to Ryabkov , who negotiated with the United States on January 10, on Russia's key proposals, "the United States and its allies are actually saying 'no' to us," and the counter proposals "are secondary to the same non-expansion of NATO." Accordingly, “I see no reason to sit down in the coming days, gather again and start these same discussions,” the diplomat stressed.

However, he specified that Russia is waiting for formalized proposals. However, in the event of a failure of the negotiations, measures such as the deployment of Russia's military infrastructure in Cuba and Venezuela are not ruled out, quotes Interfax Ryabkov. As for the prospect of new sanctions, Russia will find alternatives: "Moscow has never caved in under them."

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov then softened the rhetoric, pointing out that "the position of the West, quite tough, arrogant somewhere, unyielding and uncompromising, was stated quite calmly, in a businesslike manner, which allows us to count on the prospect of comprehending the negotiations held in Washington." According to the minister, Russia is waiting for counter proposals from the US and NATO on security guarantees next week.

• After Ryabkov's statements, the dollar rose by 70 kopecks to 75.3 rubles, the Moscow Exchange index fell by almost 2%.
• By 18:15 Moscow time, the dollar crossed the mark of 76 rubles. Credit-default spreads for Russia (5-year CDS), reflecting country risk, have jumped to March 2020 levels.
• At the talks with NATO on January 12, Russia made no progress on key issues, the Kremlin stated today. But in secondary aspects, in the main arms control in Europe and mutual contacts, progress has been made, Washington and its allies have expressed their readiness to start substantive negotiations, wrote . Kommersant
• The discussion of guarantees at the session of the OSCE Council on January 13 also did not bring concrete results.
• What new sanctions are being prepared for Russia in the US Senate, we told here .