This was stated by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in an interview with dpa.

It is noted that Moscow has the opportunity to provide all stakeholders with a peaceful and peaceful holiday period.

According to Stoltenberg, there are tens of thousands of servicemen concentrated near the Russian-Ukrainian border. He singled out the scale of the build-up and the lack of signs of stopping or slowing it down.

Read also: Russian troops at the border: bluff or threat of attack

Stoltenberg did not explain whether he saw the movement of Russian troops as an attempt by Moscow to make concessions to the Security Alliance.

The NATO Secretary General expressed readiness to hold talks with Moscow in the context of its "security guarantees" requirements. At the same time, the head of the Alliance rejected the idea of ​​possible non-accession of individual states to NATO.

"We cannot question NATO's right to protect all allies, as well as the basic principle that every nation has the right to choose its own path", - Stoltenberg said.

Read also: NATO Rapid Reaction Force reduced to combat capability due to risk of Russian aggression

Russia's position on its ability to decide what its neighbors may or may not do means reintroducing the concept of "spheres of influence," the secretary general said.

"This is completely contrary to everything that ensured peace and stability in Europe after the end of the Cold War", - he added.

What is known

• The Guardian reports, citing British intelligence sources, that there are currently about 175,000 Russian servicemen near the Ukrainian border, and that Russia is considering three scenarios for a military offensive.
• On 16 December, at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that if there was aggression against Ukraine in the future, it would have severe consequences and a very high price.
• US Army General Mark Millie considers Russia's open aggression a threat to the security of the United States and NATO member states.
• Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said the United States was monitoring Russia's actions near Ukraine's borders. He called on Russia to abide by the Minsk agreements and be transparent about its actions.
• Russia continues to build up troops near Ukraine's borders, despite a video conference on December 7 that US President Joe Biden called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to de-escalate the conflict. Russia suspends and changes the schedule of commercial air and rail flights for the transportation of personnel and Russian military equipment. US and Ukrainian officials have evidence of this.

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