SOCHI (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the organization agreed to hold a meeting of the Russia-NATO Council before the alliance's July summit in Warsaw.
"There are procedures under which if someone wants to convene the NATO-Russia Council, there should be consultations and consensus. And if one is invited through a microphone without prior consultations, it says that the people are being guided by other interests. We have not been approached [on the issue]," Lavrov told reporters.
In 2014, NATO suspended practical civilian and military cooperation with Russia amid strained relations over the Ukrainian crisis, as the alliance accused Moscow of involvement in the conflict. Political dialogue in the NATO-Russia Council, however, was not halted.
In April, a Russia-NATO Council meeting at the level of permanent envoys was held in Brussels.