×
Enjoying ad-free content?
Since July 1, 2024, we have disabled all ads to improve your reading experience.
This commitment costs us $10,000 a month. Your support can help us fill the gap.
Support us
Our journalism is banned in Russia. We need your help to keep providing you with the truth.

Moscow Energy Company Says 'Ukrainian' Paint Job Was Glitch

Unkn0wnerror / Twitter

Six workers are being investigated after they accidentally painted a high-voltage transmission tower in southern Moscow in Ukraine's national colors.

Images of the giant blue-and-yellow electricity tower in Moscow quickly made the rounds on Russian social media networks — a day after four people were arrested for attaching a Ukrainian flag to one of Moscow's landmark Stalin-era buildings and covering its spire's Soviet star in paint.

The maintenance workers had been instructed to paint the tower to match the logo of electricity firm MOESK using three colors — blue, yellow and white — a spokesperson for the capital's south-western district was cited as saying by news agency Interfax.

"But for some reason, workers got stingy on the white paint," the spokesperson said Thursday.

The six workers responsible for the embarrassing incident have been detained by police and there are plans to have the tower repainted, the spokesperson added.

But in a sign the painters might not be the only ones to blame for the glitch, the energy company's spokeswoman Elena Burenina told Moskva news agency that the missing third color was not white, but golden.

"They only had time to paint one of the towers in blue and yellow. Gold will soon be added," Burenina was quoted as saying, adding that the images of the tower posted online represented unfinished work.

Gazeta.ru news portal quoted a police officer stationed at the site that the tower's colors had "nothing to do with Ukraine."

"It was done by ordinary Russian guys," the police officer was quoted as saying.

Police also demanded that the news portal's photographer on the scene delete all pictures of the tower, and said that the area around the tower will remain off-limits for anyone but authorized personnel, the report said.

See also:

All Climbers Under House Arrest For Ukraine Flag on Stalinist Building

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more