McFaul: 'Only a Complete Fool Would Invade Russia'

"NATO will never invade Russia," he tweeted.

McFaul tried to alleviate Russia's concerns regarding NATO's blatant military buildup and increasingly belligerent rhetoric by saying that "Russians should also relax about NATO defensive weapons near Russian borders."

The bloc's military hardware should be of no worry for Russians, since Moscow does not intend to invade NATO countries, the American diplomat explained.

McFaul's final argument was probably meant as the strongest one. The former US ambassador alleged that "no fools [are] running NATO countries," since "only a complete fool would invade Russia." One can only hope that NATO leaders are indeed reasonable and pragmatic.

Moscow has found it hard to believe that weaponry and people amassing in its close neighborhood serve purely defensive purposes. The increasing amount and the unprecedented scale of NATO war-games are not helping to convince Russia of NATO's declared peaceful intent either.

Additionally, Russia plans to boost its air defense along its Western border by deploying a number of modern S-400 Triumf and Pantsir-S air defense systems. The move is part of a large-scale program to modernize its military by 2020.

Some in the Twitterverse were not convinced. One user asked McFaul: "But why then we are still trying to provoke them? You should know better than anybody they will defend themselves at any cost."

Another one observed: "Honestly, NATO looks increasingly like the suicide club. And I wonder so-called a defensive weapon against whom?"

The former US ambassador to Russia has an answer to the last question, but the logic behind it remains puzzling.