Britain’s ambassador to Russia was met by a mob as she was summoned to the country’s foreign ministry today over claims the UK orchestrated attacks on the Nord Stream pipes and the Black Sea Fleet.
Deborah Bronnert was confronted by demonstrators waving banners reading ‘Britain is a terrorist state’ and ‘Britain will answer for the Nord Stream’ as she stepped out of her car in Moscow this morning.
Russia’s foreign ministry hauled Bronnert in to show her ‘evidence’ that the UK had helped orchestrate Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet at Sevastopol at the weekend.
The meeting also comes after the foreign ministry and Kremlin accused the UK of working with America to attack the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipes in September.
Bronnert strolled past ignoring the protest – which appeared to be stage-managed – and stayed inside the ministry for around half an hour.
There was no immediate comment from Russia or Britain about what transpired during the meeting.
Britain has denied being involved in direct attacks on Russia or its assets but is open about providing support to Ukraine’s war effort, with London warning Putin it would back Kyiv before he chose to invade.
Western officials said Wednesday that Russia’s increasingly wild allegations about nuclear weapons and sabotage attacks are a way to distract from its failing war.
The protests follow a frenzy of anti-British claims, while demands to retaliate against the UK have come from Russian officials and Kremlin-controlled Russian state TV.
The UK is being spuriously blamed for explosions in the Nord Stream gas pipelines and a weekend drone attack on the naval port Sevastopol in annexed Crimea.
‘The UK ambassador will be summoned and will be given the appropriate materials,’ said foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova a day ahead of the meeting.
The official alleged ‘the participation of British specialists in the preparation of Kyiv’s attacks’.
It was unclear who the protesters were but they appeared to be stage-managed.
If anti-Putin protesters want to organise a demonstration in Moscow, it is almost impossible to get permission.
Close Putin crony Nikolai Patrushev – secretary of the Russian security council – repeated the allegations against Britain in a Moscow speech today.
