DURBAN /South Africa/, September 8. /TASS/. Seeking to preserve their hegemony, Western countries are taking aggressive actions that only add to international tensions, Russian Deputy Emergencies Minister Alexander Kurenkov said on Friday.

"In a bid to preserve their hegemony over the rest of the world, countries of the collective West are only whipping up international tensions with their aggressive actions," he said at a meeting of the BRICS working group on emergency response.

According to Kurenkov, such activities incite social, religious, and ethnic strife, economic crises and armed conflicts in various parts of the world. "Russia faces these challenges and threats as well," he noted.

He stressed that it takes coordinated efforts on the interstate level to confront today’s challenges and threats.

"Our country is ready to share its expertise, technologies and experience to teach people how to protect themselves amid natural calamities and disasters," he said, adding that Russia is always open to constructive cooperation.