WASHINGTON, December 22. /TASS/. The United States’ provocative actions in Ukraine will inevitably lead to escalation, the consequences of which could be unpredictable, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said on Wednesday, commenting on Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s visit to Washington.

"Despite our warnings, Patriot air defense system will be sent to Kyiv. However, the country does not have specialists to work with them. So, will those be American specialists? Or citizens of another NATO country? They cannot but realize here that Western weapons are being systematically destroyed by our military. I think everyone understands perfectly well what fate the personnel, manning these complexes on the territory of Ukraine, can face," he said.

"I want to emphasize that we have repeatedly tried and are still trying to appeal to common sense at all levels. It was stressed that the provocative actions by the U.S. are steadily leading to an escalation, the consequences of which cannot even be imagined. Thusly, discussions about the hypothetical supply of ATACMS missiles and long-range strike UAVs to Ukrainians are deeply disturbing," Antonov added.

Zelensky’s visit to the United States has demonstrated that neither Washington nor Kiev is ready for peace, Antonov said. "The United States is fully responsible for unleashing the Ukrainian conflict in 2014. All these years, Washington has stubbornly ignored or pretended not to notice the inhuman crimes of the Kiev regime against the Russian population in Ukraine," he noted.

"Zelensky’s visit to the American capital, the talks in Washington showed that neither the administration nor Zelensky are ready for peace. Focus is on war, on the death of ordinary soldiers, on further tying the Ukrainian regime to the needs of Washington. The notions mulled by the U.S. media that Russia is not interested in achieving peace are a blatant lie. The Russian position was repeatedly voiced by the President of Russia," the ambassador stressed.