Kremlin Says Russia Now in State of War, Everyone Should Understand This

After the West became involved in the conflict in Ukraine, the special military operation turned into a war, and Russia is now in a state of war, everyone should understand this, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"We are in a state of war. Yes, it began as a special military operation, but [...] when the collective West became a participant in this on the side of Ukraine, for us it already became a war. I am convinced of this. And everyone should understand this," Peskov said in an interview with Russia’s Argumenty i Fakty newspaper.

Furthermore, Russia will continue to act so that Ukraine’s military potential does not threaten the security of its citizens and territory, the official said.

Russia cannot allow the existence on its borders of a state that has a documented intention to use any means to take Crimea away from it, Peskov added.

Moreover, Russia has stopped most of the attempts of Ukrainian sabotage groups to penetrate the border regions of the country at a distance from the border, according to the spokesman.

"We do not have any occupied territories there. If you have heard the statement of the Defense Ministry, all these attempts of invasion by sabotage groups, the vast majority of them were stopped while they were approaching our state border, so, of course, this is out of the question there. And our new regions – yes, we still need to go to the borders there, we need to liberate the territory, push back the enemy in order to protect our citizens," Peskov told reporters.

At the same time, the Kremlin spokesman said that the legal status of Russia's operation in Ukraine had not changed, as de jure it is a special military operation.

"This is a special military operation, nothing has changed. I am saying that, in fact, it has turned into a war for us after the collective West got involved. This is not related to any legal changes. This is a de jure special military operation. But de facto, in fact, for us, it turned into a war after the collective West more and more directly increased the level of its involvement in the conflict," Peskov stressed.

Peskov also commented on the report published earlier on Friday by the Financial Times newspaper that cited sources familiar with the discussions that the United States had urged Ukraine to halt attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure over concerns that the strikes may cause skyrocketing global oil prices and provoke retaliation.

The spokesman said Moscow would prefer that Washington call on Kiev to abandon terrorist activities against civilian targets in Russia than urge to stop attacks on energy facilities.

"This is the business of the United States. We would prefer that the United States call on the Kiev regime to completely renounce its essence, its terrorist activity in relation, first of all, to peaceful social facilities of residential buildings," Peskov said.

Kremlin Calls EU Proposal on Russian Grain Imports Another Example of Unfair Competition

The European Commission's proposal to raise tariffs on imports of Russian and Belarusian grain also didn't go unnoticed. Peskov called it another vivid example of unfair competition.

"The consumer in Europe will definitely suffer. We have many alternative supply routes. Here, of course, experts must consider how quantitative flows will be there, and how much they will be able to compensate for these de facto prohibitive measures. This is another clear example of unfair competition," Peskov told reporters.

On Friday, the European Commission said that will propose to increase the tariffs on imports of Russian and Belarusian grain products that, however, would not affect exports to third countries. The move will not affect "the transit of cereals, oil seeds and derived products from Russia and Belarus to third countries," the EU body said.

Kremlin Calls Idea That Russian Frozen Assets Abroad Have No Owners Absurd

Lastly, the Kremlin's press secretary called the idea that Russian frozen assets abroad have no owners absurd, as they belong to Moscow.

"We have heard statements from Brussels that, they say, the income from our assets does not belong to anyone. This is not the case, they belong to the asset holders, the owners of the assets. And to think that they do not belong to anyone is at least absurd," Peskov said at a briefing.

If the EU makes such decisions, then there would be very serious consequences for everyone involved, the spokesman added.

"As for media reports about possible fears of banks, the legal service of any bank understands the catastrophic consequences of such actions on expropriation of assets for the bank, for the country as a whole, and for the European economy, and so on and so forth. We have already repeated that, of course, if such decisions are implemented, it will entail very serious consequences for those who made them and who implemented them," he elaborated.

On February 12, the EU Council decided that the profits from frozen Russian assets would be retained for their further use in the interests of Ukraine. European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, later suggested that the EU use these profits to buy weapons for Kiev, marking a change in EU rhetoric, as the bloc had previously discussed using the money to finance Ukraine's reconstruction. On March 21, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the income from Russian assets does not belong to anyone, so it can be used for military assistance to Ukraine.