Kremlin says latest French, British remarks on Ukraine ‘unprecedented new round of tension’

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Kremlin on Monday said the latest remarks by France and the UK regarding Ukraine are an “unprecedented new round of tension.”

“You and I have recently witnessed an unprecedented new round of tension, which was initiated by the French president (Emmanuel Macron) and the British Foreign Office. This was all very dangerous rhetoric,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in a press briefing in Moscow.

Peskov’s comments came in response to a question if France had sent soldiers from its foreign legion to Ukraine, which he said are reports that “must be checked first.”

Last week, Macron reaffirmed in an interview with The Economist that he did not rule out the possibility of sending French troops to Ukraine.

“If the Russians were to break through the frontlines, if there were a Ukrainian request — which is not the case today — we would legitimately have to ask ourselves this question,” Macron said when asked if other allies agreed with him on sending troops as a means of deterrence against Russia.

Meanwhile, according to Sky News, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron gave his support to Ukrainian strikes against targets in Russia using weapons supplied by London during a visit to Kyiv on Friday. The channel said Cameron argued Ukraine "absolutely has the right" to strike back at Moscow.

Peskov said new tensions require "special attention and special measures,” which is why Moscow announced preparations for a military exercise involving non-strategic nuclear weapons.

Earlier in the day, the Defense Ministry said it began preparations for the military exercise in response to what it described as Western “provocations and threats.”