MOSCOW, April 15 (RIA Novosti) – The Kremlin on Tuesday blasted as "absurd" reports from Western countries alleging the presence of Russian troops in eastern Ukraine.
“This is an absurd statement. There are no Russian troops there. Both the president and foreign minister have said that, and [the claim] only causes bewilderment,” said Dmitry Peskov, Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary.
Peskov also slammed the West for its reluctance to listen to Russia’s confirmation that it has no troops in Ukraine.
“It’s very bewildering that all of Russia’s statements are consciously preferred to go unheard,” Peskov said.
On Tuesday, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen once again urged Russia to pull back its troops from the border with Ukraine. In earlier statements, Rasmussen suggested pro-federalization rallies that have been sweeping eastern Ukraine were staged by pro-Russian separatists.
At the same time, Rasmussen failed to provide any sufficient evidence of Russian involvement in the events unfolding in eastern Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov responded on Monday, saying that Russia was not meddling with Ukraine’s internal affairs.
“We are not intruding into Ukraine’s internal affairs. This runs counter to our interests. There are neither GRU nor FSB special agents in the country,” Lavrov said.
