Russia's ambassador to Australia has accused the West of provoking a war in Ukraine, claiming support of Kiev is “dangerous”.
In an extraordinary press conference, Alexey Palovsky denied the build-up of more than 100,000 Russian troops on the Ukraine border was an act of “aggression”.
“I’m not saying there are no troops in our territory – I’m not,” he said.
“There is no aggression because our troops are on our territory.”
The Morrison government has repeatedly voiced its support for Ukraine and has left the door open to sanctions if Russia invades.
But Dr Palovsky said such support from the West could lead to war.
“When the western countries, now including Australia, are expressing their support … they are emboldening Kiev to continue their line of sabotage to not implement their decisions supported by the United Nations Security Council,” he told reporters.
“That is why we think such expressions of support are very dangerous — they lead to provocations, they lead to war.”
His comments follow reports US President Joe Biden told Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to prepare for a potential invasion.
The Russian ambassador also took the opportunity to rattle off a list of grievances he had with the Australian media’s reporting of the ongoing situation in Eastern Europe.
“Australians definitely are entitled to a more meaningful understanding of the situation than comic book style propaganda like Batman versus Joker,” he said.
“But I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe the Australian media could contribute to more understanding and a more fair presentation of the situation.”
Of particular concern was comments from Defence Minister Peter Dutton, who on Thursday took aim at President Vladimir Putin.
“He’s 69 years of age, and these sort of dictators, who are getting older and want to leave their legacy, start to become more and more irrational,” Mr Dutton told Sydney radio.
Dr Pavlosky said: “If such is the level of analysis informing Australian policy then it is definitely a worrying sign.”
