WASHINGTON, February 16. /TASS/. The US administration has no plans to send its troops to Ukraine if a military conflict breaks out there, but Washington will remain committed to NATO's collective defense principle, US President Joe Biden said in the White House.

"While I will not send American servicemen to fight Russia in Ukraine, we have supplied the Ukrainian military with equipment to help them defend themselves. We have provided training and advice and intelligence for the same purpose," he said. "And make no mistake: The United States will defend every inch of NATO territory. <…> An attack against one NATO country is an attack against all of us."

The US leader added that he "sent additional US forces to bolster NATO’s eastern flank." earlier this month.

"We will also continue to conduct military exercises with our Allies and partners to enhance defensive readiness," he said. "And if Russia invades, we will take further steps to reinforce our presence in NATO, reassure for our Allies, and deter further aggression."

Concerns over Moscow’s alleged preparations for an invasion into Ukraine have become more and more frequent in the West and in Kiev recently. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov castigated these statements as an empty and groundless escalation of tension, emphasizing that Russia posed no threat to anyone. At the same time, the Kremlin press secretary did not rule out possible provocations to justify such claims and warned that the attempts to resolve the Ukrainian conflict by force would carry extremely serious consequences.