Ukraine Is Just Staging Ground for Western Aggression Against Russia

Western countries do not view Ukraine as an independent state but use it as a staging ground for threats against Russia, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

"Judging by its course in recent years, I mean the West, it does not even need Ukraine as a state. The West's attitude toward Ukraine is purely utilitarian. It is viewed as a territory for neocolonial exploitation of resources and for disposing of the local population in the furnace of geopolitical conflict against Russia.

It is needed as a staging ground for permanently creating threats against us," Zakharova said at a briefing.
The West's ultimate goal is to try to weaken Russia by "bleeding Ukraine," the spokeswoman said.