I love Russia, says red-faced envoy
Warsaw – The Russian ambassador to Poland was splattered with a red substance by pro-Ukraine activists in Warsaw yesterday when he tried to lay a wreath to mark Victory Day.
Victory Day is celebrated annually on 9 May to commemorate the Soviet defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. This year’s events are taking place as Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine enters its third month.
“In Warsaw, during the laying of a wreath at the cemetery of Soviet soldiers, an attack was carried out on the Russian ambassador to Poland, Sergei Andreev, and the Russian diplomats accompanying him,” Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Telegram.
“The admirers of neo-Nazism have again shown their faces,” she said, repeating Russia’s assertion that it is fighting neo-Nazis in Ukraine.
Chanting “fascists” and brandishing the national flag, pro-Ukraine activists blocked the ambassador’s way as he walked toward the mausoleum, preventing him from laying his wreath, according to an AFP photographer at the scene.
Several individuals then threw a red substance on his face and clothes, and also splattered some of the men in his entourage.
After wiping his face with his hand, Andreev said: “I am proud of my country and my president”.
Andreev told Russian news agency RIA Novosti that he was not seriously harmed in the attack, adding that the red substance was some sort of syrup.
The Russian embassy had planned to hold an official ceremony at the site but cancelled it after a negative response from Warsaw’s mayor and the foreign
Protesters held up a big sign that said ‘criminals’
ministry. But Andreev still showed up with his wreath, as did individual Russians throughout the morning, while pro-Ukrainian protesters held up a big sign that said “criminals” and displayed photos of the war-torn country.
Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said after the incident that “Polish authorities did not recommend that the Russian ambassador lay flowers on 9 May in Warsaw”.
“The police made it possible for the ambassador to drive away safely,” he added. –