MOSCOW, November 7. /TASS/. The US-led NATO is using Ukraine to undermine Russia’s security, Nicaraguan Army Commander-in-Chief Julio Cesar Aviles Castillo said.

"The US-led NATO has repeatedly used Ukraine, particularly trying to open the Ukrainian people’s wounds. The Russian people aren’t fighting against the Ukrainian people. It is Ukraine that is fighting against Russia on behalf of NATO, seeking to undermine Russia’s security and sow instability by waging a provocative war," Castillo pointed out in talks with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu in Moscow.

He also noted that the US and its allies were trying to destabilize the situation in the countries "in Russia's neighborhood, which are also close to China, as attempts are being made to put destructive pressure on them."

"All this is no coincidence. The situation around Ukraine is no coincidence. It is all rooted in a military alliance we all know about, as well as in other military alliances formed by the Western world," Castillo stressed. "The fact is that the truth is on Russia’s side because Russia’s security was in real danger and the people in southeastern Ukraine had been coming under attack," he added.

"Since 2014, the West has been using Ukraine to try to threaten Russia. We are well aware that Ukraine’s border with Russia is 1,000 kilometers long and it’s less than 1,000 kilometers from Moscow to Ukraine. That said, the issue is very problematic, if we talk about national security," the Nicaraguan army chief emphasized.