Nauseda: West should deter Russia from invading Ukraine

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has said the West should do everything possible to deter Russia from invading Ukraine.

He said this on Tuesday, November 30, after meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris in connection with Russia's military build-up near the Ukrainian border, according to the Delfi news site.

"We should do everything we can to ensure that our words and actions are credible and that the other side understands that it is disadvantageous to act thoughtlessly and that it will face certain reactions that we are ready to make both as NATO and as the European Union," Nauseda said.

According to him, the French leader is "very familiar with the situation." "I stressed [...] it is very important that we have a consensus on the assessment of the situation and its seriousness. Because further actions on deterrence depend on it," Nauseda said.

Russia has amassed about 92,000 troops near Ukraine's borders.

Earlier, Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, said that the Russian invasion could take place in January or February in several directions: through areas of the eastern borders (both government-controlled and non-government-controlled areas), as well as from Crimea and Belarus.

op