Kathrine Frich
The rare praise for the US president came from Putin’s foreign minister.
Moscow has again signalled it will not tolerate any foreign military presence in Ukraine, sharpening its rhetoric as diplomatic efforts continue.
The message was paired with rare praise for US President Donald Trump and his approach to talks on the war.
Direct warning
Russia would treat the deployment of any Western military forces or infrastructure in Ukraine as foreign intervention, the Foreign Ministry said on Monday, citing Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
According to Reuters, Moscow would consider such forces legitimate targets.
“The deployment of military units, installations, depots and other infrastructure of Western countries in Ukraine is unacceptable for us and will be considered foreign intervention that poses a direct threat to Russia’s security,” the ministry said on its website.
Lavrov added that all foreign contingents, “including German ones,” would fall under this definition if sent to Ukraine.
Western plans
Several Western countries have discussed the possibility of deploying forces to Ukraine as part of efforts to secure a future peace agreement.
Moscow has repeatedly rejected the idea, warning it would escalate the conflict rather than stabilise it.
The Foreign Ministry said Western governments must understand the consequences of such a move, reiterating Russia’s long-standing opposition to any NATO-linked military presence on Ukrainian soil.
Talks continue
The United States has been leading diplomatic efforts to organise talks between Moscow and Kyiv.
A new meeting involving representatives of both sides is scheduled to take place this week in the United Arab Emirates.
One of the main obstacles remains territorial demands. Ukraine has rejected Russian calls to cede the entire Donbas region, including areas not occupied by Russian forces, insisting it will not give up internationally recognised territory.
Praise for Trump
In its statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry praised the Trump administration’s “determined efforts” to find a solution to the war.
It said Washington under Trump understood Russia’s concerns about NATO’s eastward expansion and its stance on Ukraine.
Lavrov described Trump as “one of the few Western politicians who not only immediately refused to impose meaningless and destructive preconditions to initiate a substantive dialogue with Moscow on the Ukrainian crisis, but also spoke publicly about its root causes.”
Sources: Reuters, Digi24.
