Russia’s UN envoy dismisses claims of Russian invasion of Ukraine as ‘fantasies’

Russia views claims of alleged Russian invasion of Ukraine currently in the works as "fantasies," Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said.

"We are still puzzled why we had this meeting today," he said. "I don’t know why at all we had this meeting today. <…> Some had fantasies that Russia <…> has already made an aggression against Ukraine, as if it had already happened."

"Not a single threat about planning to invade Ukraine has been issued by any Russian political or public figure," he said. "On the contrary, we have rejected these accusations on all levels."

"We are rejecting them again," Nebenzya went on to say. "Anyone who says otherwise is misleading you."

The West and Kiev have recently been echoing allegations about Russia’s potential invasion of Ukraine. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov castigated these claims as "empty and unfounded", serving as a ploy to escalate tensions, pointing out that Russia did not pose any threat whatsoever to anyone. However, Peskov did not rule out the possibility of provocations aimed at justifying such claims and warned that attempts to use military force to resolve the crisis in southeastern Ukraine would have serious consequences.