The US and NATO are moving troops from North America to Russia's borders, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said.
"The main forces are concentrated in the Black Sea region and the Baltic region," the head of the military department said at a meeting in Severomorsk.
He added that a total of 40,000 servicemen and 15,000 units of weapons and military equipment, including strategic aviation, will be based near Russian territory.
According to him, since the beginning of the year, Washington has doubled its air reconnaissance in this direction and increased its sea reconnaissance one and a half times.
Shoigu also reminded that every year the North Atlantic Alliance conducts up to 40 events of operative training "with a clear anti-Russian orientation". He added that in spring it will be the largest training exercise of the block Defender Europe - 2021 for the last 30 years.
In addition, the Minister pointed to the difficult situation in the Arctic.
"Competition for access to resources of the Arctic Ocean and transport communications is growing between the leading countries of the world. The United States and its NATO allies are building up naval and land groupings in the Arctic, increasing the intensity of combat training, expanding and modernizing military infrastructure," he said.
At the same time, Shoigu noted that the Northern Fleet of Russia is equipped with modern military hardware and is capable of withstanding any challenges and threats. He also said that in three weeks, two armies and three airborne troop formations were transferred to the western borders as part of the combat readiness test. The exercise will last for two weeks.
Earlier, Washington announced an escalation of "Russian aggression" and troop movements in Crimea and on Ukraine's eastern border. The United States called on Russia to explain these alleged maneuvers and said it was ready to communicate. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told RIA Novosti on Tuesday that the US side was given all the necessary comments last week. He also noted that Russia would not engage in dialogue in the "tone and perspective" proposed by the United States and that Washington would have to be satisfied with the information it had already received.
According to presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin is not obliged to explain to anyone the movements of Russian troops inside the country.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from RIA Novosti