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Kremlin takes aim at NATO: "Organization meant for aggression"

According to Peskov, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu recently reported to President Vladimir Putin that NATO had been reinforcing its forces on the eastern flank

MOSCOW, April 2. /TASS/. The North Atlantic Alliance was initially designed for aggression despite current statements about its defensive nature, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a televised interview with Belarus-24 channel on Saturday.

According to Peskov, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu recently reported to President Vladimir Putin that NATO had been reinforcing its forces on the eastern flank, or near Russia’s western borders.

"They say that NATO is a defensive organization. But, you know, that the Kalashnikov assault rifle remains an assault rifle whatever you do with it. It is the same with NATO. They were designed and created - and its architecture is geared to it - to be aggressive. It is an organization meant for aggression," the Kremlin spokesman stated.

Peskov continued that Shoigu briefed Putin that the alliance was building up its military capabilities near Russia’s western borders. The president commissioned the Defense Ministry to draw up a plan of reinforcing and bolstering Russia’s military power on its western borders, Peskov said.

"It will definitely be done in such a way that we can be secure and that the necessary parity in everything will be maintained, and in such a way that it will come to nobody’s mind <…> to attack us," he stressed.

When asked if the special operation in Ukraine was sufficient to safeguard the borders of the Union State of Russia and Belarus, the Kremlin spokesman pointed out that the two countries "are engaged in joint military buildup."

Peskov recalled the recent joint military exercises.

"Of course, it helps to fine-tune the interaction between our armies, thereby boosting efficiency," he said.