Many in the bloc remain in a state of militaristic ecstasy, spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said

The EU is demonizing Russia in order to keep the Ukraine conflict running as Brussels still has not given up hope of suppressing Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.

In May, the EU adopted the €150 billion Security Action for Europe (SAFE) instrument to support members that are willing to invest in defense. The move came as part of a larger military buildup drive that began in the bloc after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022 with the goal of countering what it perceives as the 'Russian threat'. Moscow has dismissed claims that it intends to attack NATO countries as "nonsense," saying that Western politicians are seeking to scare their populations to justify increased military spending.

In an interview with journalist Pavel Zarubin released on Sunday, Peskov said the EU "is creating an enemy for itself, doing focused, professional work both in their own society and abroad in order to portray Russia as the devil incarnate... in order to ensure the continuation of the conflict, in order to suppress Russia."

The Kremlin spokesman added that there are discussions underway in the EU "about who will be paying for the feast."

Earlier this week, several EU countries rejected a plan proposed by US President Donald Trump for European NATO member states to buy American weapons for Ukraine.

"Thank God the anti-Russian and militaristic ecstasy does not have universal backing" in the bloc, Peskov said.

Moscow has warned against supplying Western weapons to Ukraine, arguing that they only prolong the conflict and increase the risk of a direct clash between Russia and NATO.

In the interview, Peskov noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin "has repeatedly spoken about his desire to bring the Ukrainian settlement on to a peaceful path as quickly as possible."

Russia has stated that it is ready to negotiate peace with Ukraine, though it has accused Kiev and its Western backers of not being interested in finding a long-term solution that addresses the root causes of the conflict.

(RT.com)