MOSCOW – The recent deployment of Russian troops along Ukraine’s border and Moscow’s indication that it could intervene in the event of a large-scale war in eastern Ukraine dampens hopes for a peaceful settlement of the seven-year-old conflict that has cost thousands of lives .
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday that Russia has the right to deploy forces on its territory at its discretion and simply takes precautions given the “dangerous and explosive region on its borders.” with eastern Ukraine.
Mr Peskov warned that the situation on the contact line was extremely unstable and said that “the dynamics … create the danger of the resumption of large-scale hostilities”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused Ukraine of resuming “dangerous provocative actions” in its eastern Donbas region in a call on Friday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to a reading from the Kremlin.
Tensions have continued to rise between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists following a recent escalation of fighting along the demarcation line inside Ukraine, where Kiev said several of its soldiers were killed last week.