Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he would make the request to NATO foreign ministers meeting for the second day in Latvia to discuss how to respond to the Russian build-up and avert potentially the worst crisis in relations with Moscow since the Cold War.

"We will call on the allies to join Ukraine in putting together a deterrence package," Kuleba told reporters as he arrived for the talks in Riga.

This should include preparing economic sanctions against Russia, in case it "decides to choose the worst-case scenario", Kuleba said, adding that NATO should also boost military and defense cooperation with Ukraine.

Ukraine is not a member of NATO but the United States-led alliance has said it is committed to preserving the sovereignty of the former Soviet republic, which has tilted toward the West since 2014 and aspires to join both NATO and the European Union.

That has enraged Russia, drawing a warning from President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday that Russia was ready with a newly tested hypersonic weapon in case NATO crossed its "red lines" and deployed missiles in Ukraine.

Russia also backs separatists in a long-running war in the east of Ukraine, and accused Kyiv on Wednesday of mobilizing 125,000 troops, or half its army in the conflict zone. Kyiv declined to comment.

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