About 200 protesters gathered outside the Ukrainian Embassy in central Moscow on Thursday, the state-run TASS news agency reported.
The crowd stood outside the embassy, chanting "Shame on the Ukrainian junta," in response to recent similar demonstrations outside the Russian Embassy in Ukraine.
On Sunday, attackers dressed in camouflage and balaclavas attacked the cars of Russian diplomats with baseball bats at the Russian Embassy in Kiev while calling for the release of imprisoned Ukrainian military pilot Nadezhda Savchenko.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, protesters attacked the Russian Embassy with Molotov cocktails.
One of the protesters, journalist Irma Krat, posted a video of the attacks on her Facebook page in which protesters can be seen throwing objects at the embassy. After police arrived at the scene, the protesters were arrested.
Following her arrest, Krat claimed she prepared the Molotov cocktails herself.
Demonstrations also took place near the Russian consulates in Odessa and Lviv. Moscow sent a notification of the protest to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, but Kiev has yet to make an official response.
"The nationalist hysteria at the Russian Embassy in Kiev and Russophobic declarations of support for Savchenko is nothing more than an attempt to demonstrate that she is an exceptional case. [They] defend murder and demonstrate an aversion in advance to any decision of the court," one of the organizers of the demonstration in Moscow said, TASS reported.
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.
Remind me later.