Russia accuses U.S. of direct Ukraine war role, but says it's open to potential talks

Ukrainian servicemen fire a mortar on a front line, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Donetsk region, Ukraine, in this handout image released November 20, 2022. Iryna Rybakova/Press Service of the 93rd Independent Kholodnyi Yar Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the United States and NATO of playing a direct and dangerous role in the Ukraine war and said Washington had turned Kyiv into an existential threat for Moscow which it could not ignore.

Russia's top diplomat, speaking on Thursday during his annual news conference in Moscow, also accused the United States and NATO of trying to ratchet up tensions in the South China Sea and of trying to subvert any regional bodies designed to promote dialogue, such as the OSCE in Europe and ASEAN in Asia.