Muzzled after missile attack Russian spokeswoman is stopped by phone call during live appearance
"No comment": A Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman received a phone call during a press conference. In front of the eyes and ears of the world public, Maria Zakharova was told not to say anything about the deployment of a Russian intercontinental ballistic missile.
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- At a press conference in front of the world public, Maria Zakharova was asked about the use of a Russian intercontinental ballistic missile against Ukraine.
- Before the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson could answer, she received a phone call live at the press conference.
- Because the microphone remained switched on during the call, we witnessed how Zakharova was instructed "not to comment".
Following reports of the use of a Russian intercontinental ballistic missile against Ukraine, the spokeswoman of the Moscow Foreign Ministry received an order not to comment on the incident in the middle of a live press conference.
Maria Zakharova received a phone call during the briefing on Thursday in which a male voice asked her "not to comment" on the "ballistic missile" attack on the center of the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. According to Kiev, an intercontinental ballistic missile was used.
"Masha," said the unknown male voice on the phone, using the diminutive form of Zakharova's first name, Maria. The man went on to say that "we have no comment" on the attack on "Yuzhmash", which the West had begun to talk about. The press conference was broadcast live by the Foreign Ministry on the online platform YouTube.
Spokesperson rejects "intrigue"
According to the Ukrainian army, the city of Dnipro in the central east of the country was attacked by Russia with several different missiles on Thursday morning. This was the first time Russia had used an intercontinental ballistic missile since the start of its war of aggression in February 2022. According to Russian military bloggers, the target was the satellite company Piwdenmash - formerly known as Yuzhmash.
According to Ukrainian air force sources, the missile was "obviously" not equipped with a nuclear warhead. Like the Russian army, the Kremlin initially made no comment on the attack.
In a later statement to the Russian state news agency Tass, Zakharova said that the telephone conversation had served to clarify the question of whether the Foreign Ministry was responsible for this issue. She rejected the idea of an "intrigue".
