“They have chosen expanding capabilities of the global US missile shield as one of major countermeasures,” he said, adding that the missile defense potential of this system “is many times higher than needed for countering the existing, as well as potential missile threats for Europe.”
“At the same time, despite our numerous proposals, the US, European countries and NATO in general are unwilling to guarantee that it will not be used against Russia,” Gerasimov said.
Relations between Russia and the West have deteriorated in recent months amid the Ukrainian crisis. The West has accused Moscow of interfering in Ukraine’s internal affairs, a claim repeatedly denied by Russia.
NATO, which comprises the majority of European countries, as well as the United States and Canada, ended all logistical cooperation with Russia in April and boosted its military presence near Russian borders.
West Seeks to Turn Ukraine Into Source of Instability
Gen. Valery Gerasimov said the West was “seeking to turn Ukraine into a source of long-term controlled instability that directly damages Russia’s geopolitical interests and ingegration processes on the post-Soviet space.”
According to Gerasimov, the West is trying to create an image of Russia as a “blunt aggressor against the Ukraine.”
In his annual address to the Federal Assembly on December 4, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia has always supported Ukraine as a "brother nation", and that this position will not change.
