Russia stands for ruling out the threat of nuclear conflicts despite high risks at the moment and wants to reduce all chances of "artificially" elevating those risks, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a television interview aired late on Monday.
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"This is our key position on which we base everything. The risks now are considerable," Lavrov told Russia's state television, based on a transcript provided on the ministry's website.
"I would not want to elevate those risks artificially. Many would like that. The danger is serious, real, And we must not underestimate it."
Moscow accused NATO of engaging in a proxy battle against Russia by arming Ukraine, saying this had created a serious and real risk of nuclear war.
"NATO, in essence, is engaged in a war with Russia through a proxy and is arming that proxy. War means war," he said.
Lavrov's remarks came as US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin was set to convene a meeting of more than 40 countries at a German air base to discuss arming Ukraine to help it fight off Russia's latest military assault in the east. Read full story
"The next several weeks will be very, very critical," Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley told reporters traveling with him. "They need continued support in order to be successful on the battlefield. And that's really the purpose of this conference."
The aim is to coordinate aid that includes heavy weapons such as howitzer artillery, as well as killer drones and ammunition, General Milley said.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he regarded Russia's scaremongering as a sign of weakness.
Russia had lost its "last hope to scare the world off supporting Ukraine," Kuleba wrote on Twitter after Lavrov's interview. "This only means Moscow senses defeat."
Britain also played down the Russian threat.
"Lavrov's trademark over the course of 15 years or so that he has been the Russian foreign secretary has been that sort of bravado. I don't think that right now there is an imminent threat of escalation," Armed Services Minister James Heappey told the BBC.
The US State Department on Monday approved the potential sale of $165 million worth of ammunition to Ukraine. The Pentagon said the package could include ammunition for howitzers, tanks and grenade launchers. Read full story
Moscow's ambassador to Washington told the United States to halt shipments, warning Western weapons were inflaming the conflict. Read full story
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was due in Moscow on Tuesday to meet President Vladimir Putin and Lavrov, the highest-profile peace mission since the war began, although Western countries have said they have little hope of a breakthrough.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has left thousands dead or injured, reduced towns and cities to rubble, and forced more than 5 million people to flee abroad.
Moscow calls its actions a "special operation" to disarm Ukraine and protect it from fascists. Ukraine and the West call this a false pretext for an unprovoked war of aggression.
Russia has yet to capture any of Ukraine's biggest cities. Its huge invasion force was forced to pull back from the outskirts of Kyiv in the face of stiff resistance last month. But it has since announced new war aims to focus mainly on the east, and sent more troops there for an assault on two provinces where it has backed a separatist revolt.
"It is obvious that every day – and especially today when the third month of our resistance has begun – that everyone in Ukraine is concerned with peace, about when it will all be over," President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late on Monday.
"There is no simple answer to that at this time."
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