Russian diplomat says statements by US president on World War Three are escalatory - TASS

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov on Saturday said that US President Joe Biden is seeking to escalate the situation and impose the US agenda on the entire international community by bringing up the risk of World War III.

"I am drawing your attention to the fact that we are not taking any steps, either verbal - in the form of statements - or anything else, which could be regarded as an escalation," Ryabkov said on Channel One television. "Meanwhile, the top US official is openly speaking about the danger of a third world war."

"This is an attempt to fray the nerves, to impose their agenda on the entire international community," he went on to say. "For us, the destructive goals of this line are obvious."

Ryabkov added that he doesn’t see any signs that the US is ready to continue talks about the situation in Ukraine. The US has pushed a different agenda in recent months, he said.

"Instead of discussing the subject of European security, how to preserve and strengthen the architecture that has developed in Europe in recent decades, we were literally forced to discuss issues that have nothing to do with this," the diplomat said. "We see what it led to. This is a strategic miscalculation on the part of the United States, its allies, clients, and its satellites."

Biden earlier said that the US won’t go to war with Russia in Ukraine but will defend NATO territory, if necessary. He said direct confrontation between NATO and Russia would mean World War III - something the countries "must strive to prevent."