GENICHESK, December 30. /TASS/. Certain European leaders have been actively using Ukraine as a platform to study the Russian Army’s combat tactics, Kherson Region Governor Vladimir Saldo told TASS.

"Over the past few years, with assistance from the Kiev regime, Ukraine has not only been an instrument of – by the way, futile – attempts to exhaust Russia, but also, let’s say, a training ground, safe for the EU, to analyze the combat tactics being used by Russian troops," Saldo argued, adding that the line of engagement along the Dnieper River in the Kherson Region has not been an exception here. "However, no matter what the Kiev regime’s Western patrons might have eventually learned, our fighters and military commanders have tended to be able to find unconventional solutions to any task set," he said.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told TASS in an interview that the European Union has been a major obstacle to peace in Ukraine. Russia’s top diplomat stated that Brussels makes no secret of its plans to prepare for war with Russia, even as Europe should not fear an "attack" from Russia. However, should anyone dare to attack Russia, it will deliver "a devastating blow" in response, he warned.