MOSCOW. July 3 (Interfax) - Russia will avert the threat of Ukraine's entry into NATO, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said in an article published by the newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta.
"Our goal is simple - to avert a threat of Ukraine's entry into NATO, and we will achieve it one way or another," Medvedev said.
There is an opinion that Ukraine will not be admitted to the alliance while it is in a state of conflict, he said.
"Hence, however, a very simple and sad conclusion: if conflicting sides are not admitted to NATO, the conflict will be permanent, as this is a matter of Russia's existence," Medvedev said.
He also commented on statements by Western officials, who said that Russia wanted to deter NATO yet the alliance grew with Sweden and Finland.
"That's a sheer lie. We have never tried to deter NATO. This is beyond our power and capabilities, while the two Scandinavian countries (Sweden and Finland) have already been associated with the alliance. We have always asked for just one thing: take our concerns into consideration and do not invite former parts of our country to NATO, especially those we have territorial disputes with," Medvedev said.