BERLIN, Jan. 22 (AFP) - Germany will send a field hospital to Ukraine, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said on Saturday, rejecting Kiev's calls for weapons delivery once again as fears of a Russian invasion grow.

"We are standing on Kiev's side. We must do everything to de-escalate the situation," Lambrecht said.

"Weapons deliveries would not be helpful at the moment, and that is the consensus within the government," she added.

Russia has massed tens of thousands of troops on the Ukrainian border, denying it plans to invade but demanding security guarantees, including a permanent ban on the country joining NATO.

Echoeing Western allies, Lambrecht said Moscow's demand to decide which state joins NATO was a "red line" for the alliance.

"There is no Russian veto-right for membership to NATO. Every sovereign nation that shares our values is free to apply for membership. But beyond this red line, there is readiness from the West to speak with Russia and to take its interests into account," she said.

Turning to Mali, another theatre of conflict involving Russia, Lambrecht said Moscow will not achieve its aims simply by deploying mercenaries to the West African countries.

Mali is the epicentre of a jihadist insurgency that began in the north of the country in 2012 and spread three years later to neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso.

Germany has around a thousand troops stationed in Mali as part of the United Nations' MINUSMA mission.

The West believes that several hundred Russian mercenaries from the Wagner group had been deployed in the centre and north of the country.