Russia is ready for peace, but the West is leading the world to escalate, said Russian Ambassador to Britain Andrey Kelin. He spoke about this in an interview with BBC News.

Kelin assessed the course of the special operation with the words “Russia has not yet begun to act seriously.” According to him, Moscow is ready for negotiations. “[The duration of the conflict in Ukraine] depends on the efforts to escalate it by NATO countries, especially the UK … Sooner or later, of course, this escalation may take on a new dimension that we do not need and do not want. We can make peace tomorrow,” he stressed.The diplomat added that Russia is “16 times” larger than Ukraine, as it has “colossal” resources. Earlier, Kelin explained that the West is seeking to accept Ukraine into NATO to contain Russia. “On the one hand, this is a political, economic deterrence, on the other hand, it turns into military forms and through the development of Ukrainian territory,” he specified.