Russian Presidential Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that Moscow sees the need to maintain its military presence near the borders of Ukraine in light of the "intensification of NATO's hostile activities in this country."

Peskov told CNN that Russia "does not see NATO as a defense alliance dedicated to fostering peace, stability, and prosperity", but rather as a tool of confrontation.

He stressed that "NATO is not a dove of peace, not a dove of stability, not a dove of prosperity. NATO is a weapon of confrontation. And this weapon of confrontation with each year started to get closer and closer to our borders."

Peskov explained that "there are some understandings" between Russia and the West, but "in general, in principle, we can now say that we are staying on different tracks, on totally different tracks, and this is not good, and this is disturbing."

On January 10, a new round of negotiations took place in Geneva regarding the strategic stability between Russia and the United States, and a meeting between NATO and Russia followed in Brussels. 

Yesterday, the Russian Presidency Spokesperson confirmed that "tension on the border with Ukraine is very intense."

The Hill newspaper published videos on its Twitter platform, showing him as saying, "that is why Russia insists on getting a direct response to its proposals on security guarantees," noting that Moscow wants "a very specific answer to its very specific proposals."

Peskov confirmed that there are "tensions on the border", adding that "there is a lot of tension in this part of Europe."

He also stressed that such a situation is "very dangerous for our continent," and for this very reason, Russia is waiting for a direct response to its concerns.

Russia cannot "tolerate" NATO's "gradual invasion" of Ukraine, Putin spokesman says https://t.co/tlHvVYNQ8R pic.twitter.com/Tcf2MfsV99

— The Hill (@thehill) January 17, 2022

The Presidential Spokesperson confirmed that "Washington has not provided any evidence for its allegations that Russia is planning to escalate the situation around Ukraine," and said, "we are still waiting for evidence and proofs."

Regarding the reports accusing Russia, he noted, "We're living in a world of fake accusations and fake news, in a world of lies. Until it is proven somehow [...] we will continue to presume it is fake news."