Zakharova Says West Sees Ukraine’s “Anti-Russia” Project as a Dead End
Dragon Media News Desk
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova claimed that Western countries were beginning to reduce financial support for the Kyiv government after recognising the limits of what she called their effort to turn Ukraine into an “anti-Russia” project. She also alleged that Kyiv had tried to suppress reports of a secret torture facility near the Ukrainian capital.
At a November 5 press briefing, Zakharova addressed the Arctic, Western aid to Ukraine, US–Russia relations, a gas contract with Serbia, Armenia’s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), sport and damage to a Soviet military memorial in the Netherlands.
Zakharova said the decline in aid to Kyiv was not due to Ukrainian battlefield successes. She claimed Western countries were reducing their support because they believed the project of turning Ukraine against Russia had reached a dead end. She added that Western taxpayers were increasingly questioning why billions of dollars were being sent to Ukraine while their governments faced domestic budget pressures.
She accused Kyiv’s security forces of repressing Ukrainians and alleged that Western financial support was helping sustain those actions. Zakharova said Kyiv had panicked and sought to silence reports about a secret torture facility in Petropavlivska Borshchahivka, near the capital. She also accused international human rights organisations of failing to respond adequately to the allegations and publicly circulated footage.
These allegations were made by Zakharova at the briefing; the material provided does not independently verify them.
On the Arctic, Zakharova said Russia prioritised constructive cooperation but would take necessary countermeasures if it faced potential challenges or threats in the region.
She accused the US Congress of repeatedly obstructing efforts to normalise relations with Russia. Dialogue between Moscow and Washington was practical in nature, she said, but there was no evidence of meaningful progress in bilateral relations. She cited the return of confiscated Russian diplomatic property and the resumption of direct air links as unresolved issues.
Zakharova said discussions on extending the gas contract with Serbia would take place after a new government was formed in Belgrade and submitted an official request.
She accused Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of using vague language when discussing a choice between the EAEU and the European Union. Zakharova said Armenia’s people should be consulted before the government makes such a decision. She added that Armenia could still resume full participation in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and could clarify its position at a meeting of security council secretaries in Moscow on November 9. Russia did not intend to force any member to remain in the organization, she said.
Zakharova described the full return of Russian athletes to international competitions as only a matter of time. She called Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen’s remarks in favour of barring Russian athletes from European competitions in 2027 an expression of “neo-Nazism.”
Regarding damage to a cemetery for Soviet soldiers near Leusden in the Dutch province of Utrecht, Zakharova said Russia expected a prompt investigation, identification of those responsible and appropriate action. She claimed that a similar act of vandalism had taken place in July 2026 and that the Netherlands had yet to publish the results of its investigation.
Zakharova also said the controversy over the alleged secret prison near Kyiv had led Ukrainians to express their emotions in Russian, which she described as the native language of most Ukrainians.
