Kremlin warns of 'undesirable scenario' if Ukraine uses foreign soil for combat aviation

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - The Kremlin on Wednesday reiterated its warning against Ukraine's combat aviation using foreign airfields, saying it is an "undesirable and potentially dangerous scenario."

"There was already an explanation from the Defense Ministry about the possibility of using (by Ukraine) some other airfields for combat aviation. This is a very undesirable and potentially dangerous scenario," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow.

On Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry said if any country provides airfields for Ukraine's military aviation with subsequent use against the Russian armed forces, it "may be regarded as the involvement of these states in an armed conflict."

On allegations leveled by the Russian government that Ukraine was developing biological weapons at facilities supported by the US, Peskov said: "Surely it will be interesting for the whole world to understand and find out what these institutions were doing."

Peskov confirmed that the Russian side is interested in resuming peace talks with Ukraine at the earliest.

"The Russian side has been interested in continuing negotiations. The Russian position is clearly formulated, brought to the attention of Ukrainian negotiators. We are interested in holding new rounds of contacts as soon as our Ukrainian negotiators are ready for this," he said.

A meeting of the Russian, Turkish and Ukrainian foreign ministers, scheduled for Thursday on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkiye is a "very important continuation" of the negotiating process, he said.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, let's wait for the meeting," he said, refusing to express any expectations.

In response to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's remarks about his willingness to compromise on the status of Crimea, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions, Peskov said, "Russia's position is well-known."

"Crimea is a Russian region and we need to recognize this both de facto and de jure. As for the Donetsk People's Republic, the Luhansk People's Republic, these are sovereign independent states … they are recognized by the Russian Federation. This also needs to be recognized de facto and de jure," he asserted.

Peskov refused to give any assessment of losses on both sides in the war, explaining it by the inaccessibility of some settlements "blocked by nationalists".

- US 'economic war' against Russia

Regarding economic sanctions on Russia amid the Ukraine war, Peskov said, "The US undoubtedly declared Russia an economic war and is waging it."

Russia will do what suits the best its interests in this war, he added.

The spokesman also said that the economic sanctions have destabilized the global economy, particularly due to the rise in energy prices.

"We see that the situation in the energy markets is developing quite turbulently. We altogether do not know to what degree of turbulence we will reach," he said.

Responding to US Undersecretary of State Victoria Nuland, who called Nord Stream 2 pipeline "a hunk of metal at the bottom of the sea," Peskov said, "it is metal but ready for use."

Russia values its reputation as a reliable energy guarantor, and continues hydrocarbon deliveries despite the sanctions, he said.

According to Peskov, Russia expected sanctions anyway and considered them inevitable regardless of what happened in Ukraine, therefore a variety of sets of sanctions were carefully worked out and thought out in advance.

"Preparations had been started in advance to minimize the consequences of such various sets of sanctions," he said.

When asked about the list of states taking unfriendly actions against Russia, released by the Russian government on Monday, Peskov said it is subject to change and can be updated in both directions – reduced and increased.