The expansion of NATO's military infrastructure on the territories of the states that will join this structure will cause a response from Russia, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

"As for the expansion (of NATO), including at the expense of new members of the alliance - Finland, Sweden. Russia, I would like to inform you, has no problems with these states. And so in this sense, the expansion at the expense of these countries does not pose a direct threat to us for Russia," Putin said on Monday, speaking at a meeting of heads of CSTO member states, UP writes.

"But the expansion of military infrastructure into this territory will certainly cause our response. And what it will be, we will look at, based on the threats they will pose to us," Putin said.

The Russian president noted that NATO expansion is a problem "which, in my opinion, is created quite artificially, because it is done in the interests of the United States" and NATO is used as a foreign policy tool for essentially one country.

"This all aggravates the already difficult international security situation," Putin said.

"Actually, the problem is being created on bare ground, but we will respond to it accordingly," Putin said.

"In addition to this expanded policy, the North Atlantic Alliance is also going beyond its geographical purpose, beyond the Euro-Atlantic, trying more and more actively to get involved in international issues and control the international situation in terms of security and influence them, and not in the best way, in other regions of the world," the Russian president stressed.