Russia Slams US/NATO Attempts To Draw It Into Military Conflict With Ukraine | Zero Hedge

NATO's Jens Stoltenberg unleashed the latest tirade against Russia this morning proclaiming - though offering no proof - that there are Russian forces and heavy equipment in Ukraine and a high number of Russian forces on the border which "doesn't contribute to a peaceful solution." Apparently pre-empting this outburst, Pravda reports Anatoly Tsyganok, director of the Military Forecasting Centre, exclaims, "Ukraine reiterates that Russia is in the war, but it's not true," adding that in fact "the USA and the NATO have artificial satellites continuously circulating above this territory and control the situation," concluding with a jab at The US & NATO that "Russia has never participated in the military conflict. And no attempt to involve Russia in the conflict will be crowned with success."

Putin offered a peace plan but it was rejected...As Reuters reports,

Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko rejected a peace plan proposed to him last week by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday evening, according to Russian media.

Peskov said the plan, contained in a letter sent by Putin on Thursday evening, proposed a ceasefire by both government forces and separatist militiamen in southeastern Ukraine, as well as the withdrawal of heavy artillery by both sides.

"In recent days, Russia has consistently undertaken efforts as an intermediary in regulating the conflict," Peskov said in comments quoted by the ITAR TASS news agency.

"In particular, on Thursday night a written address was sent by the president of Russia to the president of Ukraine, in which a concrete plan was proposed to both sides in the conflict to withdraw heavy artillery."

A copy of the letter was published by the Russian television channel NTV. In it, Putin proposed "urgent measures for the cessation of mutual shelling, and also the rapid withdrawal by the sides in the conflict of means of destruction with a caliber higher than 100 mm".

Because...

Putin sought to burnish his peacemaking credentials last week by proposing a ceasefire to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko under which the sides would withdraw heavy artillery.

The proposal was seen by Kiev as an attempt to evade some parts of the Minsk agreement, cement rebel territorial gains and disguise the fact that Putin has no real peace plan.

"If Putin really wanted peace in east Ukraine, he would have only one 'peace plan', Boris Vishnevsky, an opposition member of the St Petersburg local assembly, wrote in a blog.

"A peace plan is very simple. If Putin does not propose one, it means he does not need peace."

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