MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia believes NATO is destabilizing northern Europe by holding military exercises there and "transferring aircraft capable of carrying nuclear arms" to the Baltic states, Interfax news agency quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Alexei Meshkov as saying.
"This reality is extremely negative," Meshkov told the agency in an interview published on Monday. "The Russian authorities are and will be taking every step to firmly safeguard the security of Russia and its citizens ... no matter which part of our country it concerns."
(Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska, Editing by Timothy Heritage)