Newsman: Russia’s foreign minister has accused Nato of fighting a proxy war by supplying military aid to Ukraine as US-hosted talks in Germany ,defense ministers gathered on supporting Ukraine. The US talks, hosted in Germany by US defence secretary Lloyd Austin, are expected to see more than 40 countries and the Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, gather at Ramstein airbase south-west of Frankfurt. General Mark Milley, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, said a key goal of the talks was to coordinate mounting security assistance to Kyiv that included heavy weaponry, such as howitzers, as well armed drones and ammunition.
“The next several weeks will be very, very critical,” Milley said. “They need continued support in order to be successful on the battlefield. And that’s really the purpose of this conference.”
Austin, speaking after his trip to Ukraine, said: “They [Ukraine] can win if they have the right equipment, the right support.”
Russia’s foreign Sergei Lavrov told Russian state media: “Nato, in essence, is engaged in a war with Russia through a proxy and is arming that proxy. War means war.”
He also warned that the risks of nuclear conflict were now “considerable” – a claim Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said showed Moscow had lost its “last hope to scare the world off supporting Ukraine”.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said continual deliveries of supplies and weaponry to Ukraine means the NATO alliance has positioned itself as “in essence engaged in war with Russia” and accused the organization of “pouring oil on the fire”.
He also warned against provoking a third world war and said the threat of a nuclear conflict “should not be underestimated”.
When asked about the importance of avoiding a third world war, Lavrov said: “I would not want to elevate those risks artificially. Many would like that. The danger is serious, real. And we must not underestimate it.”
Mr Lavrov said weapons supplied by Western countries “will be a legitimate target”, adding that Russian forces had already hit weapons warehouses in western Ukraine.
“Everyone is reciting incantations that in no case can we allow World War Three,” Mr Lavrov said in a wide-ranging interview on Russian television. He accused Ukrainian leaders of provoking Russia by asking NATO to become involved in the conflict.
