Moscow could use “the pretext of a humanitarian or peace-keeping mission as an excuse to send troops intoEastern Ukraine”, she said. A NATO military officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Russia’s build-up at the border included tanks, infantry, artillery, air defence systems, logistics troops, special forces, and aircraft.
A Russian defence ministry spokesman dismissed the NATO accusations: “We’ve been hearing this for three months already.”
Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in the Black Sea in March, and Western countries say it has funded and armed pro-Russian rebels since they rose up in east Ukraine in April.