CARACAS, February 27. /TASS/. The United States has turned Ukraine into a threat to Russia and Washington is to blame for the military conflict in the former Soviet republic, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro told a show on Venezolana de Television on Monday.

"The United States has set up CIA (Central Intelligence Agency - TASS) bases and took Ukraine under control in order to attack Russia," the Venezuelan leader maintained. According to him, "Ukraine has been turned into a threat to Russia, and this explains the conflict we are facing today." The United States "refuses to admit that it is responsible for this conflict," Maduro argued as he expressed his hope that the crisis would be resolved.