Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov asserted on Tuesday, speaking at the New Horizons federal educational marathon, that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) "grossly violated" its obligations not to strengthen security at the expense of others.
Lavrov added that "the result of such a line of the West was the unrestrained expansion of the North Atlantic Alliance to the East." Russia's foreign minister accused the United States of subduing the entire West under it. He further stated that Moscow will pay close attention to how Sweden and Finland's territories will be used by the alliance.
Earlier, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the organization would increase the military presence on its border in an attempt to deal with future Russian aggression. Meanwhile, Sweden officially signed the country's application to join NATO.