Kyiv, Mar 3 (AP) Russia's foreign minister says that Moscow is ready for talks to end the fighting in Ukraine but will continue to press its effort to destroy Ukraine's military infrastructure.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the Russian delegation submitted its demands to Ukrainian negotiators earlier this week and is now waiting for Kyiv's response in talks set for Thursday.

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Lavrov said that the West has continuously armed Ukraine, trained its troops and built up bases there to turn Ukraine into a bulwark against Russia.

Russia says that made Ukraine a threat to its security, forcing it to act.

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The U.S. and its allies have insisted that NATO is a defensive alliance that doesn't pose a threat to Russia.

Lavrov strongly rejected that, saying that the West has turned Ukraine into a “bridgehead for undermining everything that is Russian.” (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)