Russian foreign minister claims NATO and EU have declared "real war" on Russia

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has claimed that NATO and the European Union have declared a "real war" on Russia "through Ukraine" and are directly taking part in it.

Source: Lavrov at a meeting of G20 foreign ministers, as reported by Kremlin-aligned Russian news agency TASS

Details: In his usual manner, Lavrov stated that the "crisis" in Ukraine had been "provoked by the collective West" and that NATO and the EU "have declared a real war on Russia through Ukraine and are directly involved in it".

Background: 

• These comments came a few days after US President Donald Trump said that Ukraine could regain the territories seized by Russia and compared Russia itself to a "paper tiger".
• Trump also told journalists that NATO should shoot down Russian aircraft that violate its airspace.
• "With time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, NATO, the original Borders from where this War started, is very much an option. Why not?" Trump wrote on 23 September on Truth Social.
• On 24 September, Lavrov met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who urged Russia to take "meaningful steps towards a durable resolution" of the war and reiterated Trump's call to put an end to the bloodshed.

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