MOSCOW, July 14 - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that there could be no security guarantees for Ukraine without Russia's involvement, responding to a statement by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz that Moscow should play no part in shaping such arrangements.

Merz said on Monday that the issue - central to attempts to end the 4-1/2 year war - should be decided by Ukraine and its partners, not by Russia.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the comment illustrated the "dead-end position" taken by European governments over the conflict.

"It is impossible to formulate security guarantees without Russia's participation; if the Europeans are truly convinced of this stance and insist upon it, this completely rules out the possibility of European countries participating in the settlement process," Peskov told reporters.

Ukraine says it needs guarantees from the West to protect it against future attack by Moscow, whose forces currently control around a fifth of its territory.

In response to a separate question, Peskov described the imposition of EU sanctions against tech firm VK on Monday, the company behind Russia's MAX messaging app, as "utterly absurd."

Critics accuse the Russian authorities of using the app as a surveillance tool, which the Kremlin denies. Peskov said the EU sanctions would not prevent it from growing rapidly and successfully.

The EU said that by developing MAX, VK was providing "technical support for the repression of civil society and democratic opposition". REUTERS

Russia says there can't be security guarantees for Ukraine without its involvement