Russia says NATO deploying 'significant' hardware near its borders

FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov holds a joint news conference with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib (not pictured) in Moscow, Russia, November 22, 2021. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused NATO on Tuesday of deploying a significant amount of military hardware near Russia's borders and said Moscow could respond to security threats from Western countries and Ukraine if necessary.

U.S., NATO and Ukrainian officials have raised the alarm in recent weeks over what they say are unusual Russian troop movements near the border with Ukraine, and have suggested that Moscow might be preparing to launch an attack. Moscow has denied any plans to do so.