(MENAFN) European countries appear to be driven by a collective anti-Russian sentiment that leaves little room for dialogue with Moscow, Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov stated in an interview with a Russian journalist on Sunday.

Ushakov said he was “surprised… by the extent of lies, brazen lies” about Russia being spread by European politicians. “And I am of course surprised that against a backdrop of these lies, against a backdrop of hatred [of Russia], Europeans could become so consolidated,” he added. The aide noted that he could not have imagined that “Europe would speak with one voice vis-à-vis Russia – an extremely belligerent, extremely negative [voice].”

According to Ushakov, this stance effectively blocks any meaningful diplomatic engagement from Europe. He insisted that even US influence has limited effect, explaining that “the extent of… united hatred of the Europeans toward Russia is such that it is hard to ‘bore’ through this hatred even with an American drill.”

Regarding the Ukraine peace process, Ushakov accused Kiev’s authorities of being unwilling to end hostilities. He cited the understanding reached between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump in Alaska in August as the “guiding star” for resolving the conflict.

President Putin, speaking at the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi, also criticized Western Europe for “whipping up hysteria that war with the Russians is supposedly on the doorstep” and denounced the region’s militarization. He dismissed these concerns as a “nonsense mantra” and suggested European leaders focus on domestic matters instead.

Earlier this year, NATO member states agreed at a summit in The Hague to raise defense spending from the previous threshold of 2% to 5% of GDP by 2035. The European Union also approved several initiatives aimed at boosting military budgets this year, including the €800 billion ($930 billion) ReArm Europe program.

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