Despite the completely untrue statements by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the United States continues to insist on diplomacy and de-escalation and will continue to remind Russia of the consequences of further acts of aggression against Ukraine, the US Embassy in Ukraine said.

"Despite utterly false statements like those by Russian Defense Minister [Sergey] Shoigu yesterday, we continue to press for diplomacy and de-escalation. At the same time, we will continue to remind Russia of the consequences for further acts of aggression against Ukraine," the U.S. Embassy said on Twitter on Wednesday.

Earlier, Russian Defense Minister Shoigu said that "the presence of more than 120 employees of the U.S. PMCs in the settlements of Avdiyivka and Pryazovske of Donetsk region has been reliably established" and that "tanks with unidentified chemical components have been delivered to the cities of Avdiyivka and Lyman to commit provocations."