Russia warns of tragedy if NATO sends troops to Ukraine 0
(Dan Tri) – Senior Russian parliamentarian Konstantin Kosachev warned that NATO’s deployment of troops to Ukraine would lead to tragedy and could be interpreted as a `declaration of war` against Moscow.
Soldiers of NATO forces (Photo: Reuters).
Vice Chairman of the Russian Senate Konstantin Kosachev expressed his opinion on February 27 after French President Emmanuel Macron raised the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine.
Mr. Kosachev warned that the approach shown by the French leader risks turning the situation into a `tragedy`, and said that this move would not be accepted by the Kremlin.
`That will not be the moment NATO begins to participate in the war, but will be understood as NATO’s direct participation in hostile actions, even declaring war on Russia,` Russia’s top parliamentarian declared.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on February 26 that some NATO countries and the European Union (EU) are considering sending troops to Ukraine as the Russia-Ukraine conflict has entered its third year.
On the same day, French President Emmanuel Macron said there is no consensus at this stage on sending troops to the Ukrainian battlefield, but this scenario cannot be ruled out.
`We cannot rule out anything. We will do everything necessary to prevent Russia from winning this war,` Mr. Macron said, while admitting there was no consensus among NATO members
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the move would cause direct conflict between the US-led bloc and Russia.
Some NATO countries publicly rejected the proposal to send troops to Russia, while the bloc’s leaders confirmed there were no preparations to send forces to Ukraine.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated `there are no plans to deploy NATO combat forces on the ground in Ukraine` and several members of the alliance, including the US, have issued separate statements denying
US National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said President Joe Biden `has made it clear that the US will not send troops to fight in Ukraine`.
Meanwhile, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that the only US military personnel present in Ukraine are those present at the country’s embassy in Kiev to `do important work` on the issue.
Mr. Kirby denied that the US military could carry out certain activities such as mine clearance, weapons production, or cyber operations, as French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne suggested about Western militaries.
However, Mr. Kirby also added that the decision to send troops to Ukraine is `subject to the self-determination` of France or any other NATO country.
When asked whether the country could send troops to Ukraine for other purposes such as training, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the Biden administration opposes any action to deploy troops to Ukraine.
