He reported this at an expanded meeting of the board of the Ministry of Defense, which was chaired by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"NATO views Russia as its main threat, is building up its military potential near our borders ... The intensity of reconnaissance and demonstration actions of American aircraft and ships near Russian borders has increased by 15% compared to last year," Shoigu said.
According to him, the United States is also increasing the presence of its warships in the Arctic.
In addition, Washington began redeploying its combat units from Germany to Poland and the Baltic countries.
“NATO training, conducted simultaneously at the western, southern and eastern borders of Russia, has become systemic.
In August and September alone, 55 combat aircraft took part in them, including strategic bombers and 12 ships - carriers of high-precision weapons, "added the head of the Russian Defense Ministry.
Earlier, during an annual press conference, Putin stressed that Russia is forced to respond to new threats, given that NATO is approaching its borders.
In November, he also noted the expansion of NATO's presence in Europe near Russian borders.
Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov, in turn, said that the activity of NATO countries is observed at a distance of 20-30 km from the Russian borders.