Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed Friday that the EU and NATO are gathering a "coalition" to "essentially" prepare for a war with Russia.

Commenting on Ukraine and Moldova joining the EU, Lavrov said the EU is not a military-political bloc, therefore, unlike NATO, the development of its relations with other countries does not create any threats or risks for Russia.

However, Russia perceives the rhetoric of the union had been increasingly aggressive and “Russophobic,” Lavrov said at a joint press conference with his Azeri counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov in Baku.

The European Union, together with NATO, is gathering a sort of modern coalition to fight, essentially, a war with the Russian Federation,” Lavrov said, adding Russia will “monitor this very closely.”

-CNN