Wadephul and Merz’s position — Lavrov’s response

The opening explains who Wadephul and Lavrov are, their meeting in New York and its roughly 20-minute duration. Asked about Lavrov’s dismissive assessment, Wadephul describes sharp disagreements but defends talking and reiterating Germany’s position. Merz outlines a ceasefire first, territorial talks without recognizing Russian occupation, and continued support for Ukraine’s defense. Zakharova introduces Lavrov’s press conference. A dpa reporter asks what he told Wadephul and about German–Russian relations. Lavrov says Wadephul read familiar positions from notes, delivers his “read my speech” criticism, cites earlier agreements he alleges Germany and France failed to honor, and says Russia is ready to return to what he calls the Anchorage agreement. The last excerpt does not explain its terms. Edited comparison: Merz spoke on 13 August 2025, Wadephul and Lavrov on 26 September 2026; they are not a continuous exchange or a direct reply to Merz’s specific proposal.

Aug 15, 2025

At the June 24, 2026 Primakov Readings, Lavrov says Putin accepted a U.S.-origin proposal at Anchorage with nuances and calls that acceptance a compromise, while also saying that Russia made no concessions there. He describes a staged path to ending hostilities and resolving other issues, rejects demands for more concessions and says Russia has received no follow-up response after American consultations with Europe and Ukraine. His address also blames Western pressure for blocking the understandings. In his September 26 press conference, Lavrov says Russia accepted U.S.-proposed Anchorage principles as a basis for further Ukraine work, accuses European leaders of discouraging Trump and says Ukraine refused the understandings. In another complete answer he explicitly calls the result an agreement Russia is ready to return to; this is his interpretation. At Valdai on October 1, Putin says he came to Anchorage accepting U.S. proposals after initially asking for time to think, but that the American side then said it needed to think. He later describes his acceptance as a change in Russia's position. These attributed descriptions of acceptance, obstruction and the unsettled American response remain together; none establishes a finalized peace agreement. In Bahrain on June 25, 2026, Rubio says a proposal was made at Anchorage but no agreement was reached, arguing that an agreement would have ended the war. Inter carries his direct statement and conditional offer of a constructive role. His denial remains alongside Lavrov's agreement/understanding language, June compromise/no-concessions assertions and absent U.S. follow-up, and Putin's accepted-proposal but unsettled-American-response account.