Russia's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Dmitry Polyansky, coined foreign troops' presence in Ukraine an 'open secret' that was dubbed a fact before the Polish foreign minister revealed the deployment of NATO forces in Kiev. 

In a statement for Sputnik, Polyansky said “It's an open secret that Western military personnel are present in Ukraine. We know not only through the Polish foreign minister but other sources.”

He also further supported his statement by referencing the leaked conversation between German military senior officers, saying it is a "much louder revelation" than what the Polish minister said. 

A recently leaked German recording indicated that British soldiers were in Kiev assisting Ukrainian troops by firing long-range Storm Shadow missiles.

The leak further detailed how British forces collaborated with Ukraine on deploying Storm Shadow missiles against targets up to 150 miles behind Russian lines.

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What is the NATO consensus? 

Following a Ukraine summit in Paris on February 26, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that Western leaders had considered the idea of deploying soldiers to Ukraine and that while no consensus had been achieved, nothing could be ruled out.

Taking a swing at Macron, French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne clarified, "French people will not die for Ukraine. We will not send troops for combat."

France and Poland have no authority to speak on behalf of NATO, and the alliance's engagement in the dispute would "erase the path to diplomacy," Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said in an interview published on Sunday by the Italian newspaper La Stampa.

Other NATO members, notably the United States, United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, and Germany, responded quickly, stating that they had no such intentions. French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne sought to clarify Macron's remarks, telling public station Radio France Inter last Friday that Paris would not risk endangering its citizens or a direct clash between Russia and NATO.

Read more: Italy's Meloni slams Macron's invite to Zelensky as 'inappropriate'

Russia will treat US troops in Ukraine as interventionists

If the US troops appear in Ukraine, Moscow will treat them as interventionists, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said in an interview with Rossiya Segodnya Director-General Dmitry Kiselev for the Russia-1 broadcaster and Ria Novosti.

"The United States has announced that it is not going to deploy troops. We know what US troops on Russian territory are, they are interventionists. And we will treat this as such, even if they appear on the territory of Ukraine. And they [the US] understand this," Putin said.

He affirmed Russia's preparedness, both militarily and technologically, for a possible nuclear conflict, although things are unlikely to reach this point.

US President Joe Biden is part of a "traditional school of politics" and the US has many experts in the Russia-US relationship and strategic deterrence, Putin pointed out.

"That is why I do not think that everything is rushing head-on [in that direction], but we are ready for this," he indicated, noting that there has not yet been any need to use tactical nuclear weapons as part of the war in Ukraine.

Read more: US must realize consequences of allies sending troops to Kiev: Antonov