Putin says crisis between Russia and Europe is not Moscow's fault

Moscow (ANTARA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said relations between Russia and European countries are in crisis, and this is not caused by any fault on Russia’s part.

“It is clear that relations between Russia and European countries are in crisis, and it is not because of our fault,” Putin said during a meeting with permanent members of Russia’s Security Council in Moscow on Friday.

The Ukraine crisis is the fault of the previous US administration and some European countries, Putin added. He said Russia has never refused to restore relations with Europe.

Referring to events in Ukraine as a basis for the increasingly deteriorating situation in relations between Russia and the West, according to Putin, lacks sufficient grounds.

Previously, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, on Sunday (15/3), opined that the European Union is preparing for war, and the deployment of European troops in Ukraine is only a matter of time.

“War is getting closer. Brussels has increased its involvement in the Ukraine war. So now they are preparing for war. They have switched to a war economy,” Orban said in a speech to participants at the Peace March in Budapest.

“They do not want to avoid the problem, they are facing the problem instead. More weapons, more money, more troops… We do not know exactly what time the first troops from Brussels will set foot on Ukrainian soil. But we know for sure: it will happen,” he continued.

Orban added that he is committed to keeping Hungary as an “island of security and peace” even in such a turbulent world.

Source: Sputnik/RIA Novosti