Moscow summons British and French envoys over deadly Ukrainian missile strike
The Foreign Ministry in Moscow has summoned the envoys of France and Britain to submit a “strong protest” over the deadly strike on the Russian city of Bryansk.
The Ukrainian military launched the attack on Tuesday, striking the city with long-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles manufactured by the Franco-British corporation MBDA. The assault left at least eight people dead and dozens more wounded.
The ministry said it told the envoys that London and Paris “bear direct responsibility for this terrorist attack” and emphasized that the strike on Bryansk “would have been impossible without the participation of British and French specialists” in its staging.
“It was underscored that if London and Paris continue to be complicit in the war crimes of the Kiev regime, responsibility for the destructive consequences of the armed conflict and the escalation of tensions will fall on Britain and France,” the ministry stressed.
Ukraine has acknowledged responsibility for the strike, claiming it was targeting a local microelectronics factory. The attack reportedly came during a shift change at the facility, when some employees were heading to the exit. Some of the missiles used apparently missed the plant and landed in the city’s streets, damaging shopping stands, civilian vehicles and residential buildings.
Kiev has seemingly ramped up strikes on Russia in recent days while global attention remains diverted from the Ukraine conflict amid the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Ukrainian forces have staged several large-scale attacks on civilian sites in Russia, as well as repeatedly targeted the country’s energy infrastructure.
The Tuesday attack on a hospital in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic became the deadliest incident in the ongoing string of strikes. It left ten medical personnel dead, while ten other people, including nine staff, were injured.
