MOSCOW

Russia will continue to provide “all possible assistance” for the normalization of ties between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin said on Saturday.

"We hope that such regular contacts will allow us to reach final peace agreements," Galuzin said in an interview with Russia’s TASS news agency.

Asked about a May 3 drone attack on the Kremlin, which Russia claimed was carried out by Ukraine, Galuzin said: "By its actions, the Kyiv regime has once again demonstrated that no international legal, universal and moral norms mean anything to it. As we understand it, these steps of the Ukrainian authorities were not coordinated with their Western masters, who were afraid of a possible escalation of the conflict. However, none of them publicly condemned this sabotage.”

Galuzin named conditions necessary for the achievement of lasting peace in Ukraine – the country's neutral status, refusal from joining the EU and NATO, recognition of "new territorial realities," protection of the rights of Russian-speaking people and national minorities, and protection of freedom of faith.

He also criticized Kyiv's crackdown on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, claiming Ukrainian officials have been intimidating its clergymen and waging a smear campaign against them in the media.

"The height of madness, cynicism and bacchanalia was the decision made on May 24 ... on the transition to the New Julian calendar. Now Ukrainian schismatics (formally Orthodox) will celebrate Christmas not on January 7, but on December 25 together with Catholics and Protestants," he said.

Asked about relations between Russia and Moldova, Galuzin said they have been deteriorating due to an increase in the “discriminatory policy” of Moldovan authorities toward the Russian-speaking population of the republic and Russian citizens arriving in Moldova.

The official also voice concern about possible provocations in Moldova’s breakaway region of Transnistria, saying the situation around the region is “complicated.”

"We are closely monitoring the situation on the Dniester and warn of the futility of attempts to destabilize the situation. ... There should be no doubt that the Russian armed forces will respond adequately to the provocation of the Kyiv regime, should one happen," he said.

Galuzin warned that any actions that pose a threat to the security of the Russian peacekeepers in Transnistria “will be considered, in line with international law, as an attack on the Russian Federation.”