Amid escalating tensions between Russia and the U.S., former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev urged the two nations to “return to sanity” and said President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin should meet to engage in diplomacy rather than military confrontation over Syria.
Speaking to Interfax news agency, Gorbachev said Tuesday, “I am very alarmed.”
“The situation hasn’t been this bad in a long time, and I am very disappointed in how world leaders are behaving themselves. We see evidence of an inability to use diplomatic mechanisms. International politics has turned into exchanges of accusations, sanctions, and even military strikes,” he said.
While he feels certain “no one wants a war,” he noted the current “febrile atmosphere” and said that “ordinary people are not yet aware of the threat hanging over them.”
“Ordinary people are not yet aware of the threat hanging over them.”Because Russia and the U.S. are at the sharp end of the current crisis, their leaders must meet,” the Nobel Peace Prize laureate urged. “They need to meet half-way, for a day or two of serious negotiations with involvement from foreign and defense ministers.”