Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to force a reduction of NATO’s operations in Europe as a condition of future negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, according to Russia’s top diplomat.

“A political and diplomatic settlement should be accompanied by specific steps for removing the threats to the Russian Federation emanating from the Western, Euroatlantic direction,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told the United Nations Security Council. “In the process of agreeing upon mutual guarantees and accords, it will also be necessary to take into account new geostrategic realities on the Eurasian continent where a common continental architecture of truly equal and indivisible security is being formed.”