MOSCOW, March 22. /TASS/. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said that his words about the special military operation being turned into war do not mean a state of war de jure.

Asked to clarify whether his previous statement about the special military operation being turned into a war changed the status of this conflict, the Kremlin spokesman said: "Essentially, the moment the collective West entered [the conflict], it turned into a war for us. This does not imply any legal changes. It is [still] a special military operation de jure."

"But de facto - in fact - it has turned into a war for us as the collective West increasingly and more directly enhances its involvement in the conflict," Peskov added.

He also warned against comparing his use of the word "war" with what the participants in the protests against the special operation meant by it.

"This is an utterly inappropriate comparison, because their context (the opponents’ - TASS) is different from mine," Peskov said. "The word 'war' is used in different contexts. This is absolutely so. You just compare what context I have and what context is present in the slogans of the operation’s opponents," Peskov added.