NATO troops, including those from the U.S. and Poland, are directly operating air defense, missile, and rocket systems in Ukraine against Russian forces, claimed Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu.

Shoigu made the accusation during a meeting of the Defense Ministry on Tuesday.

“NATO service members are directly operating air defense systems, tactical ballistic missiles, and multiple launch rocket systems” in Ukraine, Shoigu said, according to Russia Today. The ministry apparently reached this conclusion based on intercepted radio conversations involving English and Ukrainian speakers.

If true, this would indicate a marked escalation of Western involvement in Ukraine and lend more evidence in support of those, like Tucker Carlson, who warn that the Ukraine conflict is drifting inexorably towards a direct conflict between the U.S. and its NATO allies against Russia. President Joe Biden warned of such a consequence if Congress failed to pass more funding to arm Ukraine, which the legislative branch has resisted.

Presenting a scenario in which Russia attacks a NATO ally of the U.S. and taking into account the NATO commitments of the U.S., Biden said, “Then we’ll have something that we don’t seek, and we don’t have today: American troops fighting Russian troops.”

Until now, most of Russia’s frequent allegations of NATO involvement in the conflict have pertained to the training of troops and the provision of funds, arms, and intelligence, as reported by The Associated Press. To the extent that Westerners have been involved in the fighting, most have seemingly been volunteers or mercenaries, as reported by The Dallas Express.

Shoigu went on to claim that more than 5,000 foreign fighters had been killed since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, including 466 Americans, per Russia Today.

The Dallas Express contacted the Pentagon regarding the Russian assertions of U.S. involvement and casualties in the war and received a firm denial.

“Those claims are false. Appears to be another instance of Russian misinformation,” replied Maj. Charlie Dietz, a Department of Defense spokesperson.