The rhetoric is intensifying between Russia and the West as the crisis in Ukraine continues.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the West of looking to “seize” Ukraine, while the US blames Russia for being behind the unrest in cities in the east of the country.

Ukraine has warned Russia that it would consider any military units crossing the border a “military invasion” no matter if Russia attempts to describe the action as humanitarian or an attempt to protect ethnic Russians living in the eastern cities.

Russia maintains that it is merely looking to protect ethnic Russians, and complains that it is the focus of a propaganda smear campaign by the US and its allies, with Russian President Vladimir Putin describing the internet as a “CIA project”.

Russia’s annexation of Crimea and continued military build up on the Ukrainian border has resulted in sanctions by the US and EU on Russian businesses and figures close to Putin. These sanctions have caused Russia’s foreign credit ratings to have been downgraded, with Standard & Poor rating Russia’s credit rating as one step above “junk” status.