“Intensive work is needed to prevent the arms race. Instead of adhering to this principle, NATO member states have redoubled their efforts to restrain Russia,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a press conference on March 1, Report informs.
“Suffice it to mention the inclusion of the Kyiv regime in the orbit of the Alliance, the provision of it with lethal weapons, as well as provocative military exercises near the Russian border and others. So far, Western colleagues have not shown their readiness to provide Russia with legal, long-term security guarantees,” Lavrov said.
“We are talking about the further expansion of NATO, including the rejection of the "Bucharest formula" that Ukraine and Georgia will not join the alliance. Western countries should refrain from establishing military facilities on the territory of countries that were formerly part of the USSR and are not members of the Alliance,” he said.