MOSCOW, January 27. /TASS/. Moscow calls on NATO to withdraw its forces from Eastern European states in order to reduce military tensions on the continent, Russian Foreign Ministry deputy spokesman Alexey Zaytsev said Thursday.

"It is clear that the military tensions in Europe will reduce if NATO withdraws its forces from Eastern European states. So this is what we call for, this is one of the key points of our proposals for NATO on guarantees of security," he said.

On December 17, 2021, Russian Foreign Ministry published draft agreements with the US and NATO on guarantees of security. The agreements imply, among other things, rejection of NATO’s further eastward expansion, including by rejection of Ukraine’s admission to the alliance, as well as restriction of deployment of serious offensive weapons, including nuclear ones. Several rounds of negotiations have already taken place, but no agreements have been announced yet. On January 26, the US and NATO provided Russia with their written responses on guarantees of security.