The Russian Defense Ministry flatly denies any aggressive plans toward the Baltic countries.

Chief of the ministry's international military cooperation department Leonid Ivashov told Interfax Wednesday that "Russia not only makes statements that it has no aggressive aspirations toward its neighbors but is taking concrete steps toward easing tension in relations with the Baltic countries." On the contrary, Ivashov said, "it's the constructive foreign and defense policy of Russia that finds understanding among the majority of European states, thereby decreasing the chances of NATO's expansion." "In these conditions, someone is trying to dramatize the situation and whip up militaristic hysteria," the military said. He described the Latvian president's anti-Russian rhetoric as an attempt to make it easier for her republic to join the North Atlantic Alliance. "The essence of such statements by Baltic and other representatives is to try to press NATO's leadership to secure the admission of the regional countries, Latvia among them, to the North Atlantic Alliance," Ivashov said. He was commenting on remarks made by Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga in a BBC interview that Russia may take up arms again to re-capture the Baltic nations.