Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov confirmed that "continuing to work as usual with the American side is impossible, as Moscow and Washington are, in fact, in a state of open conflict," according to TASS news agency. He added during his participation in a discussion at the Valdai International Club: "The American colleagues are joking when they talk about 'business as usual' because that has not existed between the United States and Russia for a long time. We cannot restore cooperation as it was before, especially since we currently find ourselves in a state of open conflict with the United States."
In response to American statements that Russia does not have the legal right to suspend its participation in the Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty, he stated: "The Vienna Convention on Treaties grants Russia the right to decide to suspend participation in the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty." He did not rule out that the possibility of nuclear escalation in Ukraine is at its highest level, following reports of Britain supplying Ukraine with weapons containing depleted uranium. He noted that the likelihood of a nuclear conflict now "is at its highest level in decades," in remarks reported by Russian news agencies.
