Russia hopes to receive concrete answers from the United States to its security guarantee proposals in January 2022, Presidential Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

Peskov said in a press statement that there are no specific deadlines (for the US and NATO response), and Russia hopes to get one as soon as possible. 

On December 17, Russia presented two draft documents detailing its security arrangements for negotiation with the US and NATO regarding de-escalation in Ukraine. 

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said he would not reveal Russia's measures so that the other parties would not make use of them in case the security guarantees presented within the Russian proposals were rejected.

In an interview for Al Mayadeen, Ryabkov had stressed that Russia prefers to be optimistic about the draft, hoping the other side would accept the search for solutions. He added that the US has set conditions related to Ukraine to reduce the escalation, but they are unacceptable.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin called on NATO to start substantive talks with the aim of providing Russia with reliable, long-term security guarantees.

He explained that the documented legal guarantees are exactly what Moscow needs because Western colleagues have not fulfilled their verbal obligations.

Putin has repeatedly accused the Ukrainian authorities of violating the Minsk Agreements, which laid out a road map for achieving peace in eastern Ukraine (Donbas).