Moscow: Russia on Tuesday accused Ukraine of staging new civilian deaths in a number of locations in an effort to pin the blame on Moscow.
The Russian defence ministry made the assertion after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky demanded tough new sanctions on Moscow over killings in the town of Bucha that have prompted international condemnation. The Russian defence ministry said on Tuesday that the Ukrainian military recorded a fake video that purported to show “peaceful civilians allegedly killed by the Russian armed forces”.
The video was made on Monday evening in the settlement of Moshchun some 20 kilometres (12 miles) northwest of Kyiv and was designed to be distributed through Western media, Moscow said. “Similar events are now being organised by the Ukrainian special services in Sumy, Konotop, and other cities,” the Russian defence ministry said, referring to cities in north-eastern Ukraine.