The Kremlin assessed today that NATO is on a path of unstoppable militarization and is determined to present Russia as “the demon from hell” to justify the large increase it is seeking in the defence spending of its member countries.

The leaders of NATO’s 32 member countries, who are attending a two-day summit today and tomorrow in The Hague, have said Russia could attack an alliance state in the coming years if they do not stop its proliferation in Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called NATO “an alliance created for confrontation. It is not an instrument of peace and stability,” he denounced, noting that the alliance’s goal is to persuade its members to spend 5 percent of their GDP on defense, as the U.S. president is calling for, Donald Trump, while denying that Moscow plans to attack a NATO member country.

“The alliance is steadily moving along the path of unbridled militarization. To pass the 5% target, it is necessary to invent a demonic threat,” Peskov said.

“To do this, you need to create the image of a demon from hell, a monster. And in the opinion of these NATO officials, our country is the best for the role of the monster,” the Kremlin spokesman assessed.

In a separate speech earlier today, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused NATO of moving outside its traditional region in an attempt to gain a foothold in the Middle East, the southern Caucasus, central Asia, the Arctic, and the Asia-Pacific region.