Vladimir Putin issued yet another warning to the West on Monday during talks with allies Xi Jinping and Narendra Modi. The Russian president urged against the expansion of NATO, which he sees as a “root cause” of the protracted war with Ukraine. He said: “In order for a Ukrainian settlement to be sustainable and long-term, the root causes of the crisis, which I have just mentioned and which I have repeatedly mentioned before, must be eliminated.”

Putin argued that Ukraine is being enticed by the West to join the military alliance – a decision that would ultimately be down to its existing members. He has consistently opposed this since 2008 when the idea was first floated, fearing it would bring NATO forces to his borders. The war was in part started because of “the ongoing attempts by the West to bring Ukraine into Nato”, he added.

On Monday, Putin reiterated his stance that NATO’s expansion eastward poses “a direct threat to Russian security”, arguing that the war was started after a coup in Kyiv supported by Ukraine‘s allies.

During the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting with the Chinese and Indian leaders, he also thanked his allies for their “efforts and proposals” in the peace process.

The Russian president also appeared to claim that he and Donald Trump agreed on a roadmap to peace during their summit in Alaska last month.

He said: “In this regard, we highly appreciate the efforts and proposals from China and India aimed at facilitating the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis.

“I would also note that the understandings reached at the recent Russia-US meeting in Alaska, I hope, also contribute toward this goal.” He added that work was “already underway” to resolve the conflict.

Putin called for “a fair balance in the security sphere” for peace to work, referring to his list of demands of NATO and European nations.

During the leaders’ meeting, China’s Xi also called upon world leaders to unite against “hegemonism” and accused of the US of “bullying practices” whilst promoting his vision for a new global order.

Without directly mentioning the US, he appeared to reference Mr Trump and his continuing trade war, urging leaders that they must “oppose the Cold War mentality, bloc confrontation and bullying practices”.

Putin backed this up, adding that the bloc “could take on the leading role in efforts to form a more just and equal system of global governance in the world.”