Moscow: Russia would view the potential deployment of European troops to Ukraine as direct NATO involvement in the conflict, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday.
Lavrov called the move a “direct, official and undisguised involvement of NATO countries in a war against the Russian Federation” and warned that the presence of such forces in Ukraine would be unacceptable to Moscow.
The remarks came after French President Emmanuel Macron announced Wednesday that he would consider sending European troops to Ukraine to enforce a peace deal, although he said the troops would not engage in frontline combat.
“This is a threat to Russia,” said Lavrov, adding that Moscow sees “no room for compromise” on the issue of deploying European forces to Ukraine.
“This discussion is being conducted with an openly hostile objective,” he said.
The foreign minister added that suspending U.S. military aid to Ukraine could help end the conflict quickly.
