Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Wednesday that U.S. President Joe Biden knows that the only alternative to sanctions against his country is a Third World War, which would be "a devastating nuclear war."

Biden "is experienced and knows that there is no alternative to sanctions, but world war," Lavrov told the Qatari television channel Al Jazeera. "World War III would be a devastating nuclear war," he stressed.

Lavrov also said Russia was "ready" to face any economic sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union over the invasion of Ukraine. However, he hoped the sanctions would not target athletes, intellectuals, artists, and journalists.

Despite the measures taken against Vladimir Putin's government, "Russia has many friends and cannot be isolated," warned the Russian minister, reported EFE.

Lavrov said that the conflict with Ukraine was provoked by Western countries who refused to heed Russia's demands to formulate a new plan for European security.

Russia’s military operation is aimed at disarming its neighboring country. "We cannot allow the presence of offensive weapons in Ukraine that threaten our security," he added, according to EFE.

Lavrov's warning comes amid Russian attacks on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, with aerial interventions on the sixth day of the Russian invasion.