RUSSIA’S veteran foreign minister told the United Nations on Saturday that Moscow has no intention of attacking Europe, but insisted any aggression towards Russia will be met with a “decisive response.”

As new tensions rise between Russia and the Nato military alliance, Moscow’s top diplomat, Sergey Lavrov, told the UN general assembly that it was Russia that was facing threats.

“Russia has never had and does not have any such intentions” of attacking European or Nato countries.

“However, any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response. There should be no doubt about this among those in Nato and the European Union.”

Mr Lavrov said that, from the very beginning, Russia “has been and remains open to negotiations aimed at addressing the root causes of the conflict” in Ukraine, while ensuring Russia’s security and vital interests. 

Referring to Ukraine’s hopes of restoring Ukraine to its 2022 borders, the minister noted that expecting such an outcome would be “political blindness” and a complete misunderstanding of the situation.

Mr Lavrov also said Moscow is aware of Kiev’s attempts to “fabricate provocations,” adding that there are reliable grounds behind reports of planned Ukrainian military provocations in European countries. 

He said that should such plans be carried out, Kiev would face serious consequences.

He accused Ukraine and its European sponsors of failing to grasp the urgency of the moment and of showing no readiness to negotiate in good faith. 

On the contrary, Mr Lavrov said, Europe was giving permission to Kiev to act with impunity, including carrying out terrorist attacks, extrajudicial killings and reckless sabotage, driven by an obsessive and utopian goal of inflicting “strategic defeat” on Russia.

At a news conference after his speech, Mr Lavrov said Moscow appreciates the efforts of United States President Donald Trump that has rekindled dialogue between the two countries. 

When US and Russian interests don’t coincide, he said, “the most important thing is not to let it result in confrontation or collision, especially a hot confrontation, and we’re united in this position, in diplomacy.”

He said some unnamed European countries have turned diplomacy “into kissing up to their friends from Washington,” so he believes the US will continue to support Ukraine and substitute diplomacy with sanctions.

“This is a path without any promise. It won’t succeed,” Mr Lavrov said. “However, frank dialogue on any matters — well, we’ll see that the US is prepared for that, and we’re also prepared to conduct it.”