MOSCOW. Feb 17 (Interfax) - Russia has not planned and is not planning an invasion of Ukraine, and any allegations of Moscow's responsibility for the escalation of tensions are nothing but an attempt to put pressure on Moscow and devalue its proposals on security guarantees, the Russian written reply to the U.S. concerning proposals on security guarantees says.
"No Russian invasion of Ukraine is taking place or has been planned, contrary to what the United States and its allies have been declaring officially since last fall, and therefore, the allegations that 'Russia is responsible for the escalation' cannot be viewed other than as an attempt to put pressure and devalue Russia's proposals on security guarantees," the document circulated on Thursday and translated from Russian by Interfax says.
Admitting Ukraine to NATO would create "a tangible threat of the Kyiv regime's attempt to retake Crimea by force, by drawing the U.S. and its allies into a direct armed conflict with Russia, in line with Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, with all the ensuing consequences," it says.
"The allegation repeatedly mentioned in the U.S. response that Russia 'provoked the conflict in Donbas' is untenable. Its reasons are purely intra-Ukrainian. A settlement is possible only through the implementation of the Minsk Agreements and the Package of Measures, with their sequence and liability for their implementation clearly stipulated and unanimously endorsed by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2202, including by the U.S., France, and the United Kingdom," it says.
"To de-escalate the situation surrounding Ukraine, it is fundamentally important to implement the following steps: enforce Kyiv's compliance with the Package of Measures, stop shipping weapons to Ukraine, recall all Western advisors and instructors from there, forego any joint military exercises involving NATO countries with the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and withdraw all foreign weapons earlier supplied to Kyiv outside of Ukrainian territory," it says.