Russia’s ambassador to the European Union says there is still an opportunity to resolve the Ukraine crisis through diplomacy.
In an interview with the BBC, Vladimir Chizhov noted that if Ukraine maintains its neutrality, Russia may also react positively. Moscow has always warned about the possibility of Ukraine joining NATO.
Mr Chizhev also said that Moscow was monitoring the installation of NATO missile equipment in Romania and Poland at the same time as tensions in Ukraine.
Extensive military maneuvers in Belarus
Russia has deployed about 100,000 troops near Ukraine, but says it has no plans to attack.
US officials estimate that Moscow has mobilized 70 percent of the troops needed to launch a full-scale offensive against Ukraine.
Some of these forces are stationed in Belarus near the Ukrainian border. Russia’s ambassador to the European Union told the BBC that the force would return to its permanent bases after the military exercises.
The Russian government says the joint military maneuver with Belarus will be wider and larger than previous maneuvers due to the Ukraine crisis and ongoing tensions.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not specify how many Russian troops would take part in the exercise, which begins on Thursday.
NATO estimates that some 30,000 troops, including defense systems, fighters and missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, will take part in the exercise.
Western nations say this is the largest deployment of such a force since the end of the Cold War.
The United States is sending military aid to Ukraine
Diplomatic efforts
At the same time, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kolba said that European diplomatic efforts to prevent Russian military action had made progress, but that the situation was still worrying.
Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron said that during his visit, Russian President Vladimir Putin had assured him that his country’s military would not seek to escalate the crisis on Ukraine’s borders.
However, Russia has stated that it is “untrue” to say no.
Vladimir Putin met with Emmanuel Macron on Monday, February 7
Responding to the West’s threat of tougher sanctions against Russia, Vladimir Chizhov warned who would suffer the most from the sanctions, warning that Western punitive measures would lead to retaliation like Moscow.
Western countries have so far rejected some of Russia’s demands for a solution to the crisis. The demands included Ukraine not being accepted into NATO in the future and the West reducing its military presence in Eastern Europe.
The recent Ukraine crisis, which has sparked serious diplomatic tensions between Russia and the West, comes about eight years after Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula.