Russia says US-led military drills in Ukraine can have 'explosive' upshots
Russia says military exercises underway in Ukraine, led by the United States, could have disrupting consequences for the country's peace talks.
On Monday, US and NATO troops accompanied by Kiev forces launched joint military exercises near Ukraine's border with Poland involving 1,800 soldiers from 18 countries.
"The military drills involving NATO members and Ukraine's army that started in Lviv region under US command are a clear demonstration of NATO's provocative policy to unequivocally support the policies of current Kiev authorities in eastern Ukraine," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"These actions... may threaten to disrupt the visible progress in the peace process," it said.
Moscow urged Washington to understand the sensitivity, "wrongness and possible explosive consequences of holding such drills" at a time when a shaky truce to end the 15-month conflict between Kiev with pro-Russian forces is holding.
Since April 2014, Kiev has been locked in a conflict with pro-Moscow fighters who are in control of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.
International efforts to end the dispute resulted in a peace accord being signed between representatives of the two sides in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, in February; however, deadly clashes between Kiev and the pro-Russia forces continue despite the truce.
The US and its allies accuse Russia of supporting the Russian-speaking pro-Moscow fighters in eastern Ukraine, and supplying their troops with military aid, reinforcements and resources. Moscow, however, denies the charges, claiming any support from Moscow for the east Ukraine forces fighting Kiev is only of a humanitarian nature.
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