File Photo: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
Russia's foreign minister says the crisis over Ukraine has been provoked by Western efforts to pull the country into its sphere of influence as part of efforts to create a buffer zone around Russia.
In a foreign policy speech Wednesday, Sergey Lavrov harshly criticized the West for ignoring Russia's interests and refusing to treat it as an equal partner.
Ukraine's pro-Russian president was chased from power in February following months of protests sparked by his decision to ditch a pact with the European Union in favor of closer ties with Moscow. Russia then annexed Ukraine's Black Sea peninsula of Crimea and a pro-Russian insurgency has swept Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland.
Lavrov again called on the West to urge the Ukrainian government to end its military operation against the insurgents.