Russian FM Lavrov says diplomatic settlement on Ukraine remains distant

MOSCOW, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- A diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine crisis remains a distant prospect as the battlefield situation continues to escalate, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview on Tuesday.

"Judging by what is happening on the battlefield, we are still far from a political and diplomatic resolution of the crisis. Washington and its allies remain fixated on achieving a strategic defeat for Russia," Lavrov said in an interview with the Russian government's official newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Lavrov described recent missile strikes on Russian territory as an "escalatory move," adding that Moscow's warnings about responding proportionately to such actions had been ignored.

"No escalation on the part of the enemy will force us to retreat from achieving the goals. As President (Vladimir) Putin has said, we are prepared for any turn of events but always prefer to resolve disputes through peaceful means," he said.