Insinuating British Demands To Withdraw Troops, Foreign Minister Lavrov: Russian Troops Always Go Home After Training, Unlike NATO

British Foreign Minister Liz Truss with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. (Twitter/@trussliz)

JAKARTA - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov regretted London's demands that Russia withdraw troops from its own territory, insinuating that Moscow troops would return to their bases after training, unlike NATO troops, in a press statement after meeting the British Foreign Minister.

British Foreign Minister Liz Truss visited Moscow to meet with Foreign Minister Lavrov, as part of efforts to defuse tensions on the Ukraine-Russia border, which have recently consumed the minds and energy of countries around the world.

"I delivered a clear message to Minister Lavrov, Russia must reduce tensions, respect Ukraine's sovereignty and engage in meaningful talks," Foreign Minister Truss wrote on Twitter.

"If Russia is serious about not attacking, we need to see troops withdrawn. Military development is an undeniable threat to Ukraine," he continued.

The British demand that Russia withdraw its troops from its own territory was deeply regretted by Foreign Minister Lavrov.

"We have not heard another intonation (in the meeting). The demand to remove Russian troops from Russian territory has not changed in any way in response to our arguments. At the very least, this causes regret," Foreign Minister Lavrov was quoted as saying by TASS February 11.

Foreign Minister Lavrov further said that Russian soldiers always return home after training to permanent deployments. While NATO troops after maneuvering in the Baltic and Black Sea countries, usually remain in the territory of these countries.

"Unlike the exercises on its territory, which Russia conducts, and after that the troops return to the garrison. Troops away from the territory of the UK, USA, Canada, are sent to the Baltic states, to the Black Sea countries, those troops and weapons usually do not never returned home," he quipped.

"We also talked about it today, but the minister made it quite clear that it is none of our business. Meanwhile, Russian troops on Russian territory are London's main concern, while the de-escalation logo is a unifying factor for the whole western community," Lavrov criticized.

For information, the United States and Western countries are worried about Russia's invasion of Ukraine, along with the buildup of about 100,000 Moscow troops on the border of the two countries.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov branded such information an "empty and baseless" escalation of tensions, stressing Russia poses no threat to anyone.

Even so, he did not rule out the possibility of provocations being ignited to justify such claims, warning that attempts to resolve problems in southeastern Ukraine through the use of force would have the most serious consequences.