Sergei Lavrov is no stranger to making a statement. But not in a fashion sense. So, when Russia’s long-serving Foreign Minister wore a pullover jumper emblazoned with the USSR logo “CCCP” when arriving for so-called peace talks in Alaska last month with Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, Lavrov tried to claim his appearance did not mean anything. Don’t believe this “diplomatic” language for a second. These four letters conveyed a clear and powerful message – that the political project to restore the Soviet Union, at least in territorial sway, is still very much alive in the minds of Russia’s leaders. This is the wrong-headed logic that has driven Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and earlier aggression in Georgia and elsewhere.
Soviet symbolism returns to Russian diplomacy | Lowy Institute
