The Diplomat
Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares has condemned the “barbaric attacks” carried out this Friday by Russia against Ukraine, which have left at least six dead in Kyiv and another five dead in the city of Sloviansk, in Donetsk, where the Latvian consulate was hit.
“Russia continues its barbaric attacks against Ukraine,” Albares posted on social media. “Today there are dead and wounded in Kyiv and Sloviansk, and it has destroyed the honorary consulate of Latvia in this city,” he denounced. “Our support and solidarity with Ukraine and with our partners in the EU is unwavering,” he concluded.
“A rescue operation is currently underway in the Kyiv region following the Russian missile attack,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zekensky wrote on social media. “So far, dozens of people have been injured, and we also know that, sadly, six people have died,” he added.
“There are also injuries in Sloviansk due to airstrikes. Five people have been killed and nine wounded,” he continued. Sloviansk is one of the two urban centers that Ukraine retains in Donetsk. “The Russians have damaged ordinary residential homes, the consulate building, and cars,” he reported. According to the governor of this region, Vadim Filashkin, the two bombs damaged dozens of houses, industrial infrastructure, and the Latvian consulate.
“These are brutal attacks against people, for which the Russians must answer,” Zelensky warned. “Russia has long since disregarded all international norms and all human rights. They are only interested in continuing the killings. It is important that our partners also fully understand that the protection of life depends on them as well. The Patriot missiles are the number one priority,” he added.
The offensive comes after Ukrainian attacks on the facilities of Wildberries, known as the ‘Russian Amazon’, in St. Petersburg, Simferopol, and Tver. This is the fourth attack on the company, which, along with its competitor Ozon, sells goods and services equivalent to 8.5 percent of Russia’s GDP and employs four million people.
