If West Wants to Settle Ukrainian Conflict on Battlefield, Russia Ready - Lavrov

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - If Western countries want to solve the Ukrainian crisis on the battlefield, Russia is ready for this, acting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday.

"This is their [Western countries'] right, if they want to [settle the conflict] on the battlefield, it will be on the battlefield," Lavrov said during consultations at the parliament’s upper house.

Moscow has repeatedly said that it is ready for negotiations to resolve the Ukrainian crisis, but taking into account the current reality, Lavrov added.

Speaking about the conference on Ukraine in Switzerland planned for June, with Russia was not invited, Lavrov likened the situation to "giving a schoolboy a reprimand."

"The conference... boils down to formulating an ultimatum to Russia once again," he added.

Switzerland will host the high-level conference on Ukrainian crisis at an alpine resort in Nidwalden canton outside of Lucerne from June 15-16. Switzerland said that it had invited over 160 delegations from around the world to attend the event. Russia was not included on the guest list.

In April, Russian Ambassador to Bern Sergei Garmonin told Sputnik that Russia would not participate in the Ukraine peace conference in Switzerland in June in any format.