The Kremlin today accused the US and NATO of escalating tensions between East and West after announcing plans to reinforce NATO forces in Eastern Europe and evacuate the families of diplomats from the US embassy in Ukraine.
"Tensions are intensifying with announcements and concrete actions by the US and NATO," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters about the deployment of new Alliance forces in Western Europe.
He denounced "hysteria" on the part of Europe after reports of an alleged imminent Russian invasion in Ukraine have multiplied in recent weeks. The information coming out of the West is full of "hysteria" and "lies," he said.
He deemed the risk of an attack by Kiev against pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, where the two sides have been facing each other since 2014 in a war that has killed more than 13.000 people.
"Indeed, the Ukrainian authorities are concentrating a significant level of forces and means on the border with the pro-Russian separatist republics," Peskov said, considering that this situation "suggests the preparation of offensive actions" on the part of Kiev.
"All this is leading to a situation where tensions are escalating," he continued, before adding that the current "aggressive atmosphere" in Europe is "a reality."
Russia is accused by the West of having gathered tens of thousands of troops on Ukraine's borders in preparation for an attack.
Moscow denies any such plan while demanding guarantees for its security, including Ukraine's non-membership in NATO, ending the expansion of the North Atlantic Alliance and deploying its military forces in the region. Demands the West does not accept.
The US must, after several rounds of talks, submit "written" responses on this issue by the end of the week.
Earlier, NATO announced that alliance member countries had put their forces on alert and sent ships and fighter jets to bolster their defenses in eastern Europe against Russia's military activities on its border with Ukraine.
The move added to a slew of indications that the West is preparing against an aggressive Russian move against Ukraine, though Moscow denies any plan to invade.
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