BRUSSELS, December 24. /TASS/. The European Union and the United States should direct their lecturing to Ukraine, not to Russia, in order to stop the internal conflict in that country, a commentary by the press service of the Permanent Mission of Russia to the EU in response to the West preparing sanctions in case of any aggression against Ukraine published on Friday said.

"The authorities in Kiev do not seem to have realized for more than seven years of bloody domestic conflict its harmful impact on Ukraine's statehood and the fate of its people on both sides. This is the direction in which our distinguished partners should finally turn their moral lecturing and use their unquestionable experience, credibility and influence," the Russian diplomatic mission noted.

"It’s not Russia whose foreign policy is based on invasion, aggression or ‘forced democratization’. Of course we realize that EU and US leaders speak knowledgeably about such ‘foreign policy instruments’," the commentary emphasized.

"We certainly take note of their position, albeit prompted in this case by hypothetical presumption of Russia suddenly deciding to invade Ukraine. In reality, Russia has always consistently and to the last opportunity defended the principle of peaceful resolution of conflicts - not only at its borders, but anywhere in the world," the document said.

Lately, in the West and Ukraine, the claims of an alleged possible Russian "invasion" into Ukrainian territory are being touted increasingly more often. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov branded such information as an empty and groundless escalation of tension, emphasizing that Russia does not represent a threat to anyone. That said, he didn’t exclude the possibility of provocations being whipped up in order to justify such claims and warned that the attempts to resolve the problem in southeastern Ukraine through the use of force would have the most serious consequences.