'Hysteric Fit': Western Media's Russian 'Invasion' Claims Coordinated by Washington - Zakharova

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The information campaign surrounding Russia's imminent "invasion" of Ukraine is coordinated from Washington, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova noted on Saturday.

"The media coverage, I would say, is unprecedented, because all Western resources that position themselves as independent have shown their true face by exclusively serving this custom-made story from Washington," Zakharova told the Soloviev Live YouTube show, adding that the West is attempting to incite a breaking point.

Zakharova remarked during her Saturday interview that the continued unsubstantiated claims of a looming "invasion" should be handled "exactly as a hysteric fit", particularly as the US has been hankering for a conflict in the region for years.

"We should treat it exactly as a hysteric fit. The purpose of this hysteria is to escalate the situation and, of course, to create a provocation," the spokesperson said. "This is part of an internationally reaching provocation."

The provocation did not start two months ago, as the ground was prepared long ago - since the start of the Ukrainian conflict, which is "actively run by the United States," she underscored.

Zakharova's remarks came as Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov offered details on a Saturday phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden following the latest spike in tensions between the two nations.

Ushakov relayed to the public that the more than hourlong call saw Russian officials repeatedly call out the false invasion reports that are being "deliberately" given to the US media, as well as a clear failure by the West to implement the Minsk agreements.

"We outlined our considerations and stressed several times that we do not understand why it is necessary to transmit deliberately false information about Russian intentions to the media," the Kremlin aide said.

In line with Zakharova's comments, Ushakov similarly referred to persistent invasion allegations as "artificially inflating hysteria" put out by the US, stressing that "allegations of an invasion create a pretext for possible provocations by the Ukrainian armed forces."

"This is how we see this situation," he said.

The Saturday call also saw Putin discuss with Biden the supply of weapons to Ukraine, which might encourage potential provocations by Ukrainian armed forces in Donbas and Crimea, Ushakov noted.

Earlier, a White House readout detailed that Biden had warned his Russian counterpart of "swift and severe costs on Russia" if Russian troops move into Ukrainian territory. The Biden administration has not clarified the "costs" it may inflict on Russia.

Tensions between the US and Russia were kicked up a notch after PBS reporter Nick Schifrin tweeted on Friday that "three Western and defense officials" had informed him that Putin had "communicated" a decision to launch an all-out invasion against Ukraine to military chiefs.

Moments later, however, during a White House briefing, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan informed reporters that the US had no evidence to that effect. The US official explained that the PBS reporter's finding "does not accurately capture what the US government's view is today."

US officials have yet to provide any solid evidence to back claims of a looming invasion, with State Department spokesperson Ned Price earlier getting into a heated exchange with AP reporter Matt Lee when he was challenged on the assertions.

As several US allies have begun evacuating their respective embassies in Ukraine, including Australia, Russian authorities announced on Saturday that it too would reduce its staff at its diplomatic mission in Ukraine over concerns of provocations by the US and its partners.