MADRID, February 18. /TASS/. The EU and NATO are not preparing for war, the differences of opinion with Russia on the situation around Ukraine can be resolved through dialogue, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said in an interview with the Onda Cero radio station on Friday.
"There are no differences with Russia that we cannot resolve through dialogue," the minister said. "Neither NATO, nor the EU has any hidden agendas, hidden interests or anything that cannot be explained," he noted. "War can be avoided and it is unnecessary," the Spanish top diplomat added. In his opinion, "neither NATO, nor the EU is preparing for any war." "Russia should begin to de-escalate," he thinks.
Lately, Ukraine and the West have been increasingly echoing claims of an alleged Russian "invasion" of Ukraine ever more frequently. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov branded such information as an "empty and groundless" escalation of tensions, emphasizing that Russia does not pose 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 attempts to resolve the problem in southeastern Ukraine through the use of force would carry the most serious consequences.