Russia causes crisis with Ukraine, so it must put end to it – NATO Secretary General

It is Russia that is the party that caused the crisis with Ukraine, so it must put an end to this. This statement was made by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on the CBC TV channel, - Interfax-Ukraine reports.

"The aggressor is Russia. Expecting that the victim of aggression (Ukraine - ed.) should de-escalate the situation - it is like presenting the whole state of affairs in a strange and inverted form", - he said in response to a question whether the Ukrainian government should do more within the framework of the Minsk agreements in order to avoid a new war in Europe.

At the same time, he repeated, NATO is ready to sit down at the negotiating table and listen to Moscow's concerns. He noted that an agreement with Russia is possible.

He explained that, however, there is no contradiction between strengthening defense and dialogue, and that as long as NATO shows strength and unity, the organization can engage in dialogue with Russia and discuss various issues.